Fact or Fiction

[cincykent]

Are the Bengals on this week?

Kyle Boller was on today. I assume they are doing the AFC North this week.

[AGrizzlyBaer]

i just saw the ravens for a sec and heard boller say fact that he would be better then carson oh well i guess you need to keep your own confidence level up

[BengalszoneBilly]

i just saw the ravens for a sec and heard boller say fact that he would be better then carson :lol

Well it's obvious that drug use is still rampant in the Ravens locker room! Jamal must be back in business!

[BengalByTheBay]

This should actually be a pretty good test of whether it's better to let your blue chip QB rookie sit the first year or throw him into the fire. Same division and identical competition. CP sits all last year with no snaps on the season. Boller gets baptised under fire, gets hurt, but gets prime PT. Despite all of the current bellyaching about Palmer getting the reigns over Kitna this year, I still remember a lot of (maybe some of the same) people arguing that Palmer should've started last year. I guess we'll see what works best.

I admit it's not an entirely fair comparison because Palmer's got a much more balanced offense, but that might be offset by the strength of the Rats running game. Definitely an AFC North subplot at least.

[cincykent]

Didn't Daunte Culpepper ride the bench his rookie year and then make the pro bowl his first year playing as a starter?

[bengalsfan33]

I think Chad Johnson will be on tomorrow. I'm not sure though. This could be wrong but that's what i've heard.

[BadLuck]

In no way is it fair to compare Kyle Boller and Carson Palmer's seasons.

You've got a TERRIBLE offense with no receivers whatsoever vs Cincinnati, who has a realistic shot at having the best offense in the league.

[BengalszoneBilly]

In no way is it fair to compare Kyle Boller and Carson Palmer's seasons.

Tell Kyle that...he's the one who first felt froggy and jumped out with that statement!

[jditty47]

um guys...seriously...like hes gonna say he sucks and that his team sucks. Did you really think he was gonna say carson? i mean my god guys lets check back into reality for a minute and think about that one.

[cincykent]

I guess we will find out later today if the Bengals turn is today and who they have representing.

[Tiger Stripes]

hey cj is on today im watching sc right now fact or fiction is comin up!

[cincykent]

Damn. As exciting and outgoing CJ is on the field, he is the total opposite off the field. They need to ask P-Dub or somebody else to do these interviews and contests.

[Kirkendall]

Damn. As exciting and outgoing CJ is on the field, he is the total opposite off the field. They need to ask P-Dub or somebody else to do these interviews and contests.

Yea, he's very quiet when he's being interviewed or something like that. He was at Rick's when they did the Monday Night Bengal show with Fuhrman and they had to pry anything out of him.

[BengalszoneBilly]

They asked him a couple questions that there was no good way to answer without causing strife in the locker room. He tried to be diplomatic on the QB (should Palmer be handed the starting job over Kitna) question.

Then he tried not to get in trouble when they stupidly asked about Mike Browns influence on the team being bad in the past. Of course it was, but he can't say that without ramifications from the front office!

Finally when he was asked the only question that he could answer freely, (were the Bengals going to be the team to beat in the AFC North?) he didn't hesitate with a YES!

I will say this man will not get many speaking jobs after he's out of football. Not too articulate, but when you catch passes like he does...who gives a s**t!!

[cincykent]

The good news is that Carson Palmer should be getting most of the interviews, etc from now on. There is nothing wrong with saying Mike Brown is responsible. If he gets the blame for the failure he should get credit for the success. And what is wrong with saying that the Ravens are the team to beat. They won the division. Palmer needs to be the face of the Bengals now.

[ckj414]

You've got a TERRIBLE offense with no receivers whatsoever vs Cincinnati, who has a realistic shot at having the best offense in the league.

Dude, come on, I like the Bengals and all, but there is nothing realistic about that. Sure it could happen, but lets not jinx it!

[BadLuck]

You don't think the Bengals have a realistic shot at having the best offense in the league?

WR... Yeah, they have a good shot at being the best.

RB... Rudi put up almost 1000 yards in like 6 starts, didn't he? Okay, so we've got a shot at the best running game.

QB... Sitting your first year almost always gives a QB more success... and no QB taken number 1 overall has ever sat out their entire first year. I doubt he, himself, will be the best QB in the league, but there's a good chance he'll be damn good.

OL... Levi, Steinbach and Big Willie... I can't think of another team that has 3 players that good on their o-line all at the same time.

TE's... Okay, we've got one of the better blocking TEs available, a good receiver and a guy who's pretty good at both.

I don't think it's likely the Bengals will, statistically, have the best offense this year... but I also think it's not at all far-fetched to suggest we very possibly could.

[schweinhart]

Bad Luck is right on. The Bengals 2004 O has the makings of the Indy O. Who needs much of a defense if you can put up 28 in a quarter?

As soon as CP gets the air bubbles out of his bloodstream, he'll put it all together.

All the main pieces are in place for a Top 5 offense this year.

[Bobcat Bengal]

We might not have the best team statistically during the season, but for damn sure it looks like it on paper, and it'll definitely be fun to watch.

Talk about High-Octane :player:

[ckj414]

You don't think the Bengals have a realistic shot at having the best offense in the league?

WR... Yeah, they have a good shot at being the best.

RB... Rudi put up almost 1000 yards in like 6 starts, didn't he? Okay, so we've got a shot at the best running game.

QB... Sitting your first year almost always gives a QB more success... and no QB taken number 1 overall has ever sat out their entire first year. I doubt he, himself, will be the best QB in the league, but there's a good chance he'll be damn good.

OL... Levi, Steinbach and Big Willie... I can't think of another team that has 3 players that good on their o-line all at the same time.

TE's... Okay, we've got one of the better blocking TEs available, a good receiver and a guy who's pretty good at both.

I don't think it's likely the Bengals will, statistically, have the best offense this year... but I also think it's not at all far-fetched to suggest we very possibly could.

No, not even close to realistic. point by point...

WR - Johnson/Warrick/Washington are a good group, the strength of the Bengals offense, probably one of the top five Wr corps in the league. No argument, these guys are good enough to be part of the top offense in the NFL.

RB - 1000 yards in six starts, but just because Rudi wasn't starting doesn't mean he didn't get a lot of carries. I think he's about a 1200 yard back over a full season, which is good enough, but not great. Need more production on the ground and better receiving from the backs to have the top offense, and I don't think Chris Perry is going to pick up the slack. Michigan backs have a bad history, its one of the few things I have a superstition about.

QB - Unless Palmer plays like Peyton Manning did in his second season there is no chance of the Bengals having the top offense. Palmer will be a good QB in the NFL, but the odds are that he's human and he'll experience some growing pains as a result. Expect mediocre things from him in 2004. Don't worry, he'll grow out of it.

OL - Not enough depth. And you listed three names, all good players, but what about the other two starters? An OL is only as good as its weakest link. This is probably the weakest part of the offense.

A lot of the pieces are there to one day have the top offense, but I just don't see it happening this season. I see them ending up around 7th to 10th place.

[ckj414]

Bad Luck is right on. The Bengals 2004 O has the makings of the Indy O. Who needs much of a defense if you can put up 28 in a quarter?

As soon as CP gets the air bubbles out of his bloodstream, he'll put it all together.

All the main pieces are in place for a Top 5 offense this year.

Wouldn't you need Peyton Manning or a QB of that calibur to have the look of the Colts offense? Or a back as talented as Edgerrin James, who rushed for over 3200 yards his first two seasons before hurting his knee? He'll be close to his old self this season by the way. Is Chad Johnson suddenly as good as Marvin Harrison? When he catches 100 balls in a season we'll talk. He hasn't done it yet though.

really, this is all kind of absurd. Carson Palmer isn't Manning, Rudi Johnson isn't James, and Chad Johnson is getting there but he isn't Harrison yet either.

[schweinhart]

You're also absolutely right ckj. The operative word here being the "makings". CHAD is closer to Marvin than farther away. Rudi has not proven himself to be of the James caliber yet, but appears capable and also similar in style.

Obviously, Palmer is the wildcard. Peyton is an extraordinary QB, and the main reason why I think the Colts are the best bet to be AFC Super Bowl bound.

Moreover, the Colts have the upper hand at another key position -- TE.

When Dallas Clark cracked the lineup then got his leg cracked by Rodney Harrison, they hardly missed a beat because Marcus Pollard is so good.

I'm hopeful that Schobel will be the kind of TE that Pollard is, and maybe Stewart will show the flash that Clark did before he got hurt.

But in one key position I say the Bengals got the best. Tony Dungy is good and all, but I'll take ML.

[BengalByTheBay]

In no way is it fair to compare Kyle Boller and Carson Palmer's seasons.

You've got a TERRIBLE offense with no receivers whatsoever vs Cincinnati, who has a realistic shot at having the best offense in the league.

Ummm, BLuck I think you're a little hysterical here. Baltimore has arguably the best RB in the league. Granted they have no passing game to speak of, but I hardly think they're TERRIBLE and the Bengals are the best Offense in the NFL. Come on dude? Our running game looks good, but is pretty well still a work in progress. It's not like you can say if Rudi starts all 16 game he'll have more than double his yards from last year. He's only put in solid starts for one season. I hope he runs for 2000 this year, but "realistically" I put the Bengals O somewhere in the top 10.

More importantly, fielding a rookie QB what do you think is the most important?? I think the RB position rather than wideouts. If CP is nervous and getting used to the game speed I doubt they're gonna let him bomb it all over the field.

So you think there's no comparison at all, huh. Guess we'll have to agree to disagree there. But don't support your argument by saying the Bengals offense might be the best in the league when CP hasn't proven anything yet.

[Barbarian]

In no way is it fair to compare Kyle Boller and Carson Palmer's seasons.

You've got a TERRIBLE offense with no receivers whatsoever vs Cincinnati, who has a realistic shot at having the best offense in the league.

Ummm, BLuck I think you're a little hysterical here. Baltimore has arguably the best RB in the league. Granted they have no passing game to speak of, but I hardly think they're TERRIBLE and the Bengals are the best Offense in the NFL. Come on dude? Our running game looks good, but is pretty well still a work in progress. It's not like you can say if Rudi starts all 16 game he'll have more than double his yards from last year. He's only put in solid starts for one season. I hope he runs for 2000 this year, but "realistically" I put the Bengals O somewhere in the top 10.

More importantly, fielding a rookie QB what do you think is the most important?? I think the RB position rather than wideouts. If CP is nervous and getting used to the game speed I doubt they're gonna let him bomb it all over the field.

So you think there's no comparison at all, huh. Guess we'll have to agree to disagree there. But don't support your argument by saying the Bengals offense might be the best in the league when CP hasn't proven anything yet.

I'll also say that he's on something.

If the Bungles still had Corey Dillon and Jon Kitna starting--then there is no doubt that the Bungles would have a top 10 rated offense in the NFL.

However, there are many question marks:

1. Rudi Johnson--is he for real???

2. Carson Palmer--how will he do???

3. Defensive Coordinators will now plan for Chad Johnson. He will get much attention this year

4. Offensive Line Depth--if one of the Bungles O-Linemen go down it could mean trouble for the Bungles.

Yeah, Jamal may be in trouble--but you can cancel him out, since he's not sitting on D-Block as of yet. He's one of the best backs in the league. He didn't rush for 2,000 yards for nothing. His offensive line is monstrous.

No receivers for the Ravens??? Are you for real, man??? Did you forget about Todd Heap??? He's a top 3 Tight End in the NFL right now--he ranks right up there with Shockey and Gonzo. Travis Taylor is no slouch either. Now add in the time that the O-line is going to give Boller in the pocket--and that spells trouble.

Also, ranking Carson Palmer with Peyton Manning is ludicrous. Mentioning Rudi in the same sentence with Edge is also reaching. CJ is not Marvin Harrison.

[BadLuck]

WR... It's not likely CJ, Pdub, Washington, Housh and whoever will be the best receiving corps in the league. But it's not a stretch to say they could.

O-Line... Bobbie Williams and Rich Braham are both quality starters... better than Mike Goff and O'Dwyer and hey, guess what. We had an extremely good OL last year. Our depth isn't great, but it's not bad. Guys like Levya and Kooistra are solid back-ups. As for the point I made initially, when you have what could be 3 of the top 5 offensive linemen on 1 line, 2 of which are young and are expected to be better than they were last year. Our offensive line is very often talked about as one of the team's strong points by experts.

RB... Look, say what you want, the guy put up nearly 1000 yards extremely quickly. How many RBs do it as fast as he did? Splitting time with Dillon, no less.

QB... He's got enough talent around him to put up pro-bowl calibur numbers.

Now look, no one part of our offense is the best in the NFL, but EVERY (with the exception of QB) is well above average. As a unit, saying our offense has a shot at being the best in the NFL is NOT that much of a stretch. I don't think it's going to happen, but we certainly have the talent to make it happen.

As for the Ravens offense.......

Okay, my bad, they have ONE receiver and a team that has inflated rushing numbers from playing the AFCN teams twice a year. A lucky comeback win against Seattle and a certain broken record against the Brownies... Not to mention THE lowest rated QB in the league.

Damn good offensive line, though. Not enough to call their offense anything more than miserable.

The Ravens, if you recall, were extremely lucky to get 10 wins because of a certain error we all know about. If you've got one of the best defenses in the league and even an above average offense, you should be able to pull off 10 wins, no problem, ESPECIALLY in the AFCN.