Best Bengal rookie class ever

[Pidge]

Lordy, use Benson up, pay him his money and give him a slap on the back when he leaves in a couple of yrs. Thanks for everything and good luck in the future. He's not AD and even if he was he'd be used and used hard before being discarded with a mountain of injuries in 5 to 6 yrs - just as Minn are doing with Purple Jesus.

[jjvolt]

The lesson here is that to get the most, best, longest from Benson, they need to more liberally mix in Scott and Leonard. The 2-3 back system is working for the Giants, Miami, Baltimore, Dallas, Minny, NE, etc. Giving the ball to Benson will give him a usefull term of about 750 or so carries. That can happen over 2 years or 4. Only Mike Brown can decide.

All I know is the Bengals running game looked it's very best in a very long time last week, and for the first time in recent memory wasn't seeing productive drives derailed by a poorly timed negative rush attempt. For once the running game was working, and everything else was falling into place because of that success.

When it's going like that I'm not looking for snaps for rookies. Instead, I'm looking for 30 to 35 snaps from my bell cow.

tell that to shaun alexander, rudi johnson, priest holmes and LT. those guys got chewed up and spit out. done.

if scott doesn't know all the schemes yet give it to leonard 7 or 8 times. I see them running ced into the ground.

What's wrong with that? Many of us mused when they initially brought him in, and then again when they signed him to a 2 year contract, that they likely don't see him as the RB of the future. More likely they view him as a cow to hang a bell on for a couple years. Once his legs are used up and tired, once he demands his big pay day for the role he played... let him walk. Some other team is always willing to overpay.

The Bengals aren't likely terribly interested in how well Benson's legs will hold up 5 years from now if they continue this pace. Rather, they probably want to have him carry the ball as many times as possible in his 2 years here... and then move on to the next guy. The next younger guy with less wear and tear on his legs.

I see what you're saying. contractually, I guess it is good to use him up while you can, but there is nothing wrong with keeping him fresh and giving scott some reps if he can live up to some of his potential. not a damn thing wrong with some fresh, quick legs in the 4th qtr.

I did not muse when they brought him in. I was impressed and thought it was a good move to sign him.

[derekshank]

not a damn thing wrong with some fresh, quick legs in the 4th qtr.

You won't see me argue with that. The issue though is whether or not Scott is ready for such a role. I suggest that if he were ready to contribute, he would be contributing. Remember, he is still a rookie from a small school who has never played against top competition. So, while he is adjusting to the jump from college to the NFL, I have no problem with giving Benson the ball 30 times. Especially when it appears he continues to be effective late in the 4th quarter despite a heavy workload.

I did not muse when they brought him in. I was impressed and thought it was a good move to sign him.

I honestly don't know what this sentence means. In fact, the only sense I can make of it at all is under the assumption that you don't know what the word "muse" means.

It means to wonder/speculate. When Benson was signed, I speculated that they signed him to a short contract with the express purpose running him into the ground, and then when his contract expires, happily letting him get his payday elsewhere.

I agree with you that it was a good move to sign him. Where you and I might part ways is with why it was a good signing. I don't see him as a long term solution, as much as a short term work horse. And aren't 90% of NFL RB's short term solutions anyway?

The very best RB's are often great for 5 years and then their production starts to drop. Having Benson as a productive back for 2 1/2 years at a bargain price seems like a great idea... provided you never sign him to a long term deal, forcing yourself to pay him at a premium while his production declines.

[jjvolt]

Well, I may have been completely out of the loop for the better part of the month but I've still got this one.

DeDe signed with one of the UFL teams.

did not see that. you'd think someone would scoop him up in the nfl.

[SupaBran]

Its great in principle but not reality...

How exactly is this so, Supabran, when it has already been demonstrated to work in other cities, and in fact worked well for Ickey and Brooks in 88?

I was saying its not reality with our team, its a great idea that we should employ, it works all around the league!

Thing is, Rudi had one of most productive seasons here when (and I can't believe I'm saying this) Chris Perry was a good change of pace back, able to catch out the backfield and spell Rudi here and there. I am hoping we see Scott develop in that same manner, minus the p*ssy issues...

Chris Perry brought nothing substantial to this team unless we're going to tally up medical bills. The dude was a bust from the day he was drafted. The Bengals dumped him, and no other team has even given this chump a sniff. Garbage in... garbage out.

And imagine, we could've and should've drafted Steven Jackson!!!

Awww...now I'm sad...

You want to really play this game? You really want to be sad?

THAT SAME DRAFT.........Had we not taken WR Maurice Mann out of Nevada-Reno with pick # 149 of Round 5, WE COULD HAVE DRAFTED RB MICHAEL TURNER WITH PICK #154 OF THAT 5TH ROUND !!!

Seriously, I can play this game All Day.

You just made me more sad, good job!!!

Btw, per PFT.com

Kubiak takes veiled shots at Slaton

Earlier this week, Texans coach Gary Kubiak took a subtle jab at starting tailback Steve Slaton, expressing regret that Houston didn't sign free agent Cedric Benson this offseason.

"We had our chance with Cedric. It just didn't work out," Kubiak said. "We've got people to run the ball. But they have to run the ball better. You know, hindsight is 20-20. We've got to play with the people we've got."

Slaton has arguably been the league's worst running back through two games. He's fumbled three times and averaged a putrid 2.0 yards per carry (least among runners with 15 or more attempts).

Turns out Cedric's play has others regretting...

[jjakq27]

For all the bashing this team takes, I must give them credit. They have knack for drafting or acquiring excellent talent at RB year in and year out.

As far as this being the best draft ever, that is obviously up for debate. And it may take several years to truly make that statement. Just a couple of examples on ones that were promising but faded quickly. At the time they were considered good drafts but never quiet panned out.

2003

Carson

Steinbach

Squirrel Washington

Dennis Weathersby

Jeremi Johnson

Khalid Abdullah

Langston Moore

Kooistra

Elton Patterson

Mathias Askew

2004

"Glass" Perry

K.Ratliff

Madieu

Caleb Miller

Landon Johnson

Askew

Geathers

Stacy Andrews

Maurice Mann

Greg Brooks

Casey Bramlet

2005

Pollack

Odell

Slim Henry

Guy-Check

Adam Kieft

Tab Perry

Fanene

There are a number of drafts through the early years that yielded a number of starters and role players that would hang around the league of a long time. In the years where the top two to four picks were starters either that year or the next, the team seemed to have success. I think last year is an example of not getting much immediate help from your draft. In 2005 a bunch of those guys contributed by the end of the year. Here's hoping for a lot of the same this year.

As for a recent "great" draft that yielded some guys with success and longevity, I present the 2001 draft which is as follows:

Justin Smith

Chad Johnson

Sean Brewer

Rudi Johnson

Victor Leyva

Rudi Johnson

Riall Johnson

TJ Houshmandzadeh

[redsbengalsbucks]

Well, I may have been completely out of the loop for the better part of the month but I've still got this one.

DeDe signed with one of the UFL teams.

did not see that. you'd think someone would scoop him up in the nfl.

His talent level is NFL marginal, with his injury past he makes more sense in the UFL right now.