BengalszoneBilly Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 POSTED 12:09 p.m. EDT; LAST UPDATED 1:11 p.m. EDT, October 15, 2007BENGALS BLOWUP COMING?With the Cincinnati Bengals limping to an all-too-familiar 1-4 record and a last place position in the AFC North, there is increasing chatter in league circles that the situation there soon could explode. Or implode. Or whatever the right word is.As one source with knowledge of the dynamics tells us, "[Coach Marvin Lewis] has to be feeling the heat. That team is getting ready to implode." Okay, so it's implode. Carry on."I can feel it," the source said in reference to the potential implosion. "That's what happens when you build a straw house. They need to change that culture bad. Some teams can weather adversity and injuries. Some can't."The "straw house" reference arises from the teams decision to load up on players who are believed to have a high level of talent, without regard to their character.Another league source tell us there's a belief in some circles that Lewis might try to leave after the 2007 season and that, if he stays, he wants to have full and final authority over personnel. (Though it's believed by some that he has had such powers for his entire tenure with the team, others contend that he still does not truly have final say in all instances.)This new rumor doesn't completely mesh with the recent scuttlebutt that Lewis wants a "real" G.M. to be hired -- unless Marvin's ultimate goal is to create a Belichick-Pioli situation in which Lewis has the final say but he's getting his advice from someone who knows what he's doing.Lewis has been credited with changing a chronic culture of losing in Cincinnati. And though he might not instantly be hired elsewhere to serve as the head coach, he likely wouldn't be relegated for long to a coordinator position. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoePong Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 Who are all the bad characters on this team?It seems to me that we've gotten worse since we got rid of the bad characters.No Chris Henry. No Odell Thurman. We've gotten rid of many of the guys who were arrested for various things. And what do we have to show for it? We went from division champs a couple years ago to a last place team!Bring back the so-called bad apples! I want to win! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BengalszoneBilly Posted October 16, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 Who are all the bad characters on this team?It seems to me that we've gotten worse since we got rid of the bad characters.No Chris Henry. No Odell Thurman. We've gotten rid of many of the guys who were arrested for various things. And what do we have to show for it? We went from division champs a couple years ago to a last place team!Bring back the so-called bad apples! I want to win!Ah yes, that's the rub with choir boys. Problems with the law are few, but the wins on the football field are even fewer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
COB Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 POSTED 12:09 p.m. EDT; LAST UPDATED 1:11 p.m. EDT, October 15, 2007Another league source tell us there's a belief in some circles that Lewis might try to leave after the 2007 season .It isn't Marvin I'm worried about getting tired of the culture here and wanting out. It's Palmer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoosierCat Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 Yeah, I saw that PFT post yesterday, but it seemed so vague and contradictory (even by PFT's standards) that I didn't think it worth mentioning. It doesn't take an "insider" to figure out that the team's on the edge of packing it in for the season -- if it hasn't already. Nor does it take a genius to guess that Marvin has probably had a few quiet moments lately in which he's had visions of himself relaxing on a beach, eyeing scantily-clad young ladies while sipping something tall, cold, fruity and highly alcoholic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShulaSteakhouse Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 The only real news here is that there are continued rumblings about Marvin being unhappy and wanting more help from the FO. We've heard him asking for everything from an indoor practice facility, to a personnel GM so far.Trumpy, of all people, brought this up initially a couple of seasons ago in 2004, saying that Marvin has to "fight battles with Mike Brown" that we don't understand or know about, and that he's constantly having to go to battle with the Brown family to get what he wants.Certainly the success of 2005 helped keep things from blowing up with him, but now it could come to fruition at the end of the season possibly.Of course Marvin isn't goingg to go public with any of it, but it doesn't suprise me that he may leave here if he continues to have problems being sucessful, in order to save his career. As we all know Cincinnati is the black hole for head coaches in this league, and it's suprising anyone would take the job here unless they were out of work and somewhat desperate.Finally I get aggravated when I hear the "family business model" excuse from people. The Browns are given the same TV and merchandising and stadium revenues everyone else is more or less, and are given the same cap to work with, in fact their stadium deal is the sweetheart deals of sweetheart deals, rivaling that of anyone else in the league. At one point the Bengals' were one of the top 15 most profitable franchises in all of professional sports post 2001.This isn't about spending "enough" money, or big markets vs small markets, it's about drafting wisely, with less risk and more reward, and knowing when to cut bait with players or re-sign them, when to spend big on FA's when it's timely/needed, and when not to etc....,The Bengals' continually make poor decisions in all of these areas and we all know that. They are capable of competing, but they are not willing or are too stubborn to change as always - and that is what frustrates fans and season ticket holders, and coaches and players alike.It's not some mystery - and wish people would quit acting like there's nothing Mike Brown can do. Either he changes and let's someone handle his personnel decisions who has a solid understanding of how to work the cap and scout properly, or they keep hoping for a lucky winning season every 10-20 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The PatternMaster Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 I personally think Marvin wants to stay and finish what he started in 2003, HOWEVER he needs to be able to shop for the groceries, meaning they need to make him the official GM and let him have the final say over any and all personnel decisions. Forget the whole drafting by committee process, clearly that hasn't worked out too well and if Marvin is going to be blamed for bringing all of the bad guys then let him really be in charge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casey Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 POSTED 12:09 p.m. EDT; LAST UPDATED 1:11 p.m. EDT, October 15, 2007Another league source tell us there's a belief in some circles that Lewis might try to leave after the 2007 season .It isn't Marvin I'm worried about getting tired of the culture here and wanting out. It's Palmer.Bingo! That right there is my greatest fear. Palmer wants to win so badly and I'm afraid there is going to come a point where he just throws his hands up in the air. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoosierCat Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 I personally think Marvin wants to stay and finish what he started in 2003, HOWEVER he needs to be able to shop for the groceries, meaning they need to make him the official GM and let him have the final say over any and all personnel decisions. Forget the whole drafting by committee process, clearly that hasn't worked out too well and if Marvin is going to be blamed for bringing all of the bad guys then let him really be in charge.If there is any friction between Mike and Marvin over personnel, I don't think it involves the draft, at least not now. Marvin's view that bad character guys aren't worth it appears to have won out (at least this year). Whether that remains the case going forward, we'll see.I would suspect -- again, if there are any issues -- that they revolve around the Bengals' long-standing habit of favoring less expensive young'uns (draft picks, UDFAs) when faced with having to pay a modest premium for vets who aren't starting-caliber, but nonetheless are experienced, quality players. Thus we have Kilmer (or currently Nduke) in place of K2 and Coats in place of Stewart. A related issue would be letting experienced vets who could still contribute go because their price tag is "too much" for a backup (see Simmons, Brian).I'm not saying going with youth is always a bad decision, and yeah, sometimes you just can't afford to keep a higher-salary guy as a No. 2 -- but its possible to overdo it and I think they may have this time around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 Finally I get aggravated when I hear the "family business model" excuse from people. The Browns are given the same TV and merchandising and stadium revenues everyone else is more or less, and are given the same cap to work with, in fact their stadium deal is the sweetheart deals of sweetheart deals, rivaling that of anyone else in the league. At one point the Bengals' were one of the top 15 most profitable franchises in all of professional sports post 2001.This isn't about spending "enough" money, or big markets vs small markets, it's about drafting wisely, with less risk and more reward, and knowing when to cut bait with players or re-sign them, when to spend big on FA's when it's timely/needed, and when not to etc....,It's not an excuse, it's an explanation. You don't think the Lerner family has more money than the Brown family? Al Lerner was a billionaire. Those folks don't need to make money off of the Browns. I'm not saying that what MB does is reasonable -- they're totally loaded, and as you noted, the Bengals are very profitable -- but it's well-known that he watches his own money closer than probably any other owner. Remember that this is the guy who drives an old Buick or some such and takes his lunch to work. No way is he willing to spend the money it takes to hire more scouts and a GM, build a bubble, etc. All of that directly comes out of his profits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HairOnFire Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 Yeah, I saw that PFT post yesterday, but it seemed so vague and contradictory (even by PFT's standards) that I didn't think it worth mentioning. It doesn't take an "insider" to figure out that the team's on the edge of packing it in for the season -- if it hasn't already. I've come to believe that PFT's sources of inside information are the same ones they take such joy in mocking, and the same ones available to anyone with basic cable and an internet connection. ESPN, NFL Network, and the blogosphere. In short, just rewrite what you've heard or read elsewhere, add the word TURD now and then, and you've got yourself a website. It's almost inspiring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kazkal Posted October 16, 2007 Report Share Posted October 16, 2007 Who are all the bad characters on this team?It seems to me that we've gotten worse since we got rid of the bad characters.No Chris Henry. No Odell Thurman. We've gotten rid of many of the guys who were arrested for various things. And what do we have to show for it? We went from division champs a couple years ago to a last place team!Bring back the so-called bad apples! I want to win!Ah yes, that's the rub with choir boys. Problems with the law are few, but the wins on the football field are even fewer. you don't win with church mice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan2330 Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 The blowup... that will come around 7pm Sunday night if this team losses to the pathetic Jets Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bengalboomer7 Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 I don't believe the GM crap. Marvin might be asking for some personnel help, but you'd have to be an idiot to ask for someone that has power over you, including the ability to fire you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArmyBengal Posted October 17, 2007 Report Share Posted October 17, 2007 Want a blowup ?? Want proof of Carson throwing up his hands ?? Go back and watch the Monday night game against the Pats again. It appeared we were watching the blowup first hand. Everyone just quit... No one cared... Huge disapointment !!!WHODEY !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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