Odom gone? Options....

[walzav29]

Was there a trade on the table I missed?

[kingwilly]

Was there a trade on the table I missed?

who knows. not like they are going to call you or me for advice. or post it on their website and ask for opinions.

I imagine it would have merited discussion internally. call may have been made. only speculation on my part. it would be poor management if they had not examined all the options and put out some feelers. when you lose a key player like Odom, you'd guess they would examine all possibilities, not simply be resigned to "go with what they got" as the ONLY option.

wait, this is the Bengals, specifically, this is SoP, nvrmind.

[COB]

wait, ...this is SoP, nvrmind.

NFL linemen have undergone a tremendous and pharmaceutical increase in size over the last decade. Thus, when considering a replacement for Odom, most of the worthy candidates wouldn't even fit in the Lumina anymore. Thus I doubt a blockbuster trade was considered.

[HairOnFire]

Johnson hoping to fill Odom's shoes

By C. Trent Rosecrans, CNATI.com Posted October 22, 2009 2:55 PM ET

Jonathan Fanene is scheduled to start for the injured Antwan Odom on Sunday, Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis said, but it could be rookie defensive end Michael Johnson that benefits the most from Odom's absence.

That twist of fate is somewhat ironic, because Johnson credits Odom's presence as one of the things that has helped him the most in his brief professional career.

Like Johnson, Odom is a taller defensive end that has played close to Johnson's 260 pound weight. Odom bulked up to 280 pounds this season, but played closer 260 last year. Johnson, two inches taller than Odom at 6-foot-7, said he's watched Odom with a close eye since joining the team.

"Any time you come into a new place, you've got guy who have been here and they're at where you're trying to be, it's a big help," Johnson said. "We've got a great group of guys and I'm blessed to be teammates with them. I've learned a lot from them on and off the field."

On the field, he's even started to ape Odom's stance.

"(I'm) getting more weight forward in my stance," Johnson explained. "Seeing the ball out of the corner of my eye better and anticipating the snap count."

Before tearing his Achilles' tendon in Sunday's loss to the Texans, Odom was tied for the NFL lead in sacks (Denver's Elvis Dumervil broke the tie on Monday night) with eight. Johnson made sure to keep an eye on what Odom did.

"There's only two ways to get better at football, either playing it or watching it," defensive line coach Jay Hayes said. "I think whenever you can watch an experienced player, that's good for you. The next thing is he has to get out there and get the reps himself. He's been able to do that and get valuable playing time and keep going in the right direction and see where it leads us."

Johnson got in about five more plays than usual on Sunday, Hayes said, but he got his first action in the base defense. Previously, he'd been used in pass rushing situations, so that the Bengals could utilize his physical abilities and get him some early success.

"He hasn't gotten a sack yet but it's going to come," Hayes said. "When it happens, he's been close and he's gotten tipped balls, he made some tackles defensively and played base defense last week. It's coming."

Johnson has seven tackles and three passes knocked down - which is one of the advantages of having a 6-7 defensive end. Hayes also said he's "a lot faster" than Odom.

Coming into the draft, Johnson was lauded as one of the top talents in the draft, but got a reputation as an underachiever who took plays off. Hayes said he's been happy with what he's seen from Johnson on the practice field.

"He knows how to work and he's a quick learner and intelligent, I think he'll be a good player down the road," Hayes said. "He'll just get better."

Without Odom, Johnson will get his opportunity to improve on the field.

"I've got six games under my belt," Johnson said, "so I've seen some live bullets and I'm ready to shoot back."

[ArmyBengal]

MJ got a ton of reps through the preseason and has gotten good reps during the games as the situational pass rusher.

I'm really looking forward to seeing what he can do if given the chance for longer periods of time.

I just wish he didn't have to get his shot by way of injury to Odom...

[HAPPYJAQ]

MJ got a ton of reps through the preseason and has gotten good reps during the games as the situational pass rusher.

I'm really looking forward to seeing what he can do if given the chance for longer periods of time.

I just wish he didn't have to get his shot by way of injury to Odom...

Watch out for MJ, as he's really starting to come into his own. It's pretty impressive that Zimmer has enough coonfidence in the rookie to have played him in at least 4 spots on defense (RE, LE, DT and OLB) and he's been great on STs. I also like Fanene, and think there shouldn't be much drop off in the run defense when he's in there. It's nice to see him getting some pressure in the pass rush, too.

On the flipside, I'm dissappointed with Dhani's play this year, and it looks like Father Time might be looking to cash in on him. I know he's leading the team in tackles, but he's been absolutely horrendous in coverage and appears to have lost a step in his pursuit on running plays. He's making more of his tackles downfield than in the past few seasons, which is never good sign from your starting MLB. We might be closer to Rey in the middle than we think, and that could be a good thing. I'd like to see Brandon and Jeanty get more snaps in the base defense.

[Ickey44]

I don't know how soon we'll see Rey in the middle. The last couple of weeks he's been caught overpursing big time. I do agree that Dhani's been getting beat quite a bit. He doesn't look as impressive this year as he did last.

[kingwilly]

MJ got a ton of reps through the preseason and has gotten good reps during the games as the situational pass rusher.

I'm really looking forward to seeing what he can do if given the chance for longer periods of time.

I just wish he didn't have to get his shot by way of injury to Odom...

Watch out for MJ, as he's really starting to come into his own. It's pretty impressive that Zimmer has enough coonfidence in the rookie to have played him in at least 4 spots on defense (RE, LE, DT and OLB) and he's been great on STs. I also like Fanene, and think there shouldn't be much drop off in the run defense when he's in there. It's nice to see him getting some pressure in the pass rush, too.

On the flipside, I'm dissappointed with Dhani's play this year, and it looks like Father Time might be looking to cash in on him. I know he's leading the team in tackles, but he's been absolutely horrendous in coverage and appears to have lost a step in his pursuit on running plays. He's making more of his tackles downfield than in the past few seasons, which is never good sign from your starting MLB. We might be closer to Rey in the middle than we think, and that could be a good thing. I'd like to see Brandon and Jeanty get more snaps in the base defense.

You make a great observation on Dhani.

He is very slow in coverage and is late to break on plays outside... I think you are right about Rey in the middle and probably Brandon Johnson on the outside. Johnson covers very well, actually surprised he does not rotate in more for nickel and get Dhani off the field.

Probably the only thing preventing this from occuurring is they want Rey to run the D and this will take time, like for any rookie.

[volcom69]

I agree Dhani is not the same guy, and he lost a step in coverage. They proved last week that they still cannot cover the TE or the screen, but B. Johnson is way better in coverage then Dhani.

[Ickey44]

Somebody must've told Dhani everything because he was all over the place today making plays. I hope he keeps it up and that this wasn't a fluke.

[volcom69]

Somebody must've told Dhani everything because he was all over the place today making plays. I hope he keeps it up and that this wasn't a fluke.

I agree Dhani looked good out there today making plays flying to the ball. The D-Line was getting good push all game, Frostee played good, i though MJ was getting great push, only a matter of time before he gets sacks, but he moves the QB up in the pocket for other guys to get sacks. I just hope the defense plays angry like this every week, and the sky is the limit for this defense. Great game for them today.

[Ickey44]

Somebody must've told Dhani everything because he was all over the place today making plays. I hope he keeps it up and that this wasn't a fluke.

I agree Dhani looked good out there today making plays flying to the ball. The D-Line was getting good push all game, Frostee played good, i though MJ was getting great push, only a matter of time before he gets sacks, but he moves the QB up in the pocket for other guys to get sacks. I just hope the defense plays angry like this every week, and the sky is the limit for this defense. Great game for them today.

Right about MJ. He didn't get to the QB, but he drew a couple of holding calls from Orlanda Pace of all people. Good job.

[ArmyBengal]

MJ certainly would have gotten to the QB yesterday if Pace hadn't known he was beaten a few times requiring him to hold.

He was definitely a factor in the defense putting pressure on Cutler. Nice job !!!

[HairOnFire]

Like always, I guess it's up to me to send a little love in the direction of Frostee Rucker, perhaps the most ignored of all Bengals.

Huge game. Never mind the stats. Never mind the fact that it was Fanene who got the start inplace of Odom. It was Rucker who was asked most often to hold the edge against the Bears running game and he did so brilliantly. Not just good, but damn near perfect. And most suprising, steady and consistent pass rush pressure throughout the game.

I still think replacing Odom is going to be incredibly difficult over the long haul, but for one week the Bengals managed to do more than survive with their three-man rotation of Fanane, Rucker, and Johnson.

They actually thrived.....sorta.

[kingwilly]

MJ certainly would have gotten to the QB yesterday if Pace hadn't known he was beaten a few times requiring him to hold.

He was definitely a factor in the defense putting pressure on Cutler. Nice job !!!

I equate those holds with sacks. They don't "tally" the # of times a player is held and the opposing player is called for it but the result is almost as good.

I am among those who felt the loss of Odom was/is a big thing. I must say I am extremely impressed as well with the level of play that Fanene, Rucker and MJ contributed. Very impressed.

Keep it up.

[HoosierCat]

Like always, I guess it's up to me to send a little love in the direction of Frostee Rucker, perhaps the most ignored of all Bengals.

I was pimping the Non-Dairy Dessert from the moment Odom went down, and he certainly justified my faith Sunday. If he can stay healthy (a big if, admittedly) we might be asking "Odom who?" in a few weeks.

[HairOnFire]

I was pimping the Non-Dairy Dessert from the moment Odom went down, and he certainly justified my faith Sunday.

Mine too. That said, I'm still hearing more praise for Michael Johnson's near misses, thereby prompting my claim of Rucker being the most ignored Bengal.

What's the guy gotta do to get a little love in the 'Nati?

If he can stay healthy (a big if, admittedly) we might be asking "Odom who?" in a few weeks.

I think we're better than that. Then again, after reading on this very board how Odom really wasn't any better than Fanane....(voice trails off)

[derekshank]

Rucker is a very solid fill in for Odom. Specifically against the run. MJ appears to be coming along as a good pass rushing specialist.

The only problem is that Odom did both well. Now the coaching staff has to play the best guy for the situation at hand. There are certainly worse problems to have... but Odom will be missed.

[kingwilly]

What's the guy gotta do to get a little love in the 'Nati?

Stay healthy.

Same can be said about Odom. He broke out this season, until his injury, with the kind of play we were hoping he'd provide last year, until injuries but his playing time last year as well.

I have ever been enamored with the Rucker pick, but his production when healthy really cannot be criicized.

Hats off to Mr. Rucker...nice game. Seize on this chance to finally start your playing career proper.