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Corey Simon or Rudi Johnson?


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Bengals Team Report

1/9/2005

By Chick Ludwig

Dayton Daily News

A shakeup at LB is coming with the emergence of rookie Landon Johnson, the improving health of MLB Nate Webster and the struggles of veteran Kevin Hardy. Webster is due to reclaim his starting spot after spending most of the season on IR with a knee injury. That makes Johnson a candidate to move to the right outside, where he can utilize his speed to make more plays upfield. Johnson is tough with good instincts. He led the club in tackles as Webster's replacement in the middle, but that's not his ideal position. He's perfect for the weak side because, at 227 pounds, he has the range to cover and the speed to rush the quarterback. Brian Simmons has the versatility to play all three positions. He'd fit best on the strong side in place of Hardy, who has lost a step and can't close quickly anymore. . . .

WR Peter Warrick holds the key to the offense's future. If the broken bone beneath Warrick's left knee fully heals, he'll return to the slot and take some pressure off of speedy Pro Bowl WR Chad Johnson. If Warrick can't get all his quickness and speed back, the club will need to address the WR position in free agency and the draft. . . .

Maintaining continuity on the offensive line is critical to the development of QB Carson Palmer. That's why re-signing free agent C Rich Braham is a must. Braham is a warrior whose toughness and supreme knowledge of the offense provides Palmer a comfort level the club can't afford to be without.

FREE AGENT BUZZ: A run-stuffing DT and hard-hitting SS are needed to contain the big, strong tailbacks in the run-oriented AFC North. DT Corey Simon (Eagles) would be a perfect fit in a rotation with John Thornton and Langston Moore because he's strong, active and disruptive. Simon gets instant leverage with his size and strength, shows good gap discipline and does a fine job of anchoring at the point of attack and penetrating the backfield. Simon's ability to take on two blockers frees up DEs Duane Clemons, Justin Smith and Robert Geathers for more sacks. Strong safety is an area that needs an upgrade. Rogers Beckett and Kim Herring are solid veterans, but neither is an enforcer. SS Sammy Knight (Dolphins) is an attractive candidate because he's an aggressive hitter and tackler who doesn't give up yards after contact. He's the type of player who will wrestle Jamal Lewis and Jerome Bettis to the ground when the club puts eight defenders near the line of scrimmage.

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whoa sammy knight would be sweet however even if we dont pick anyone up in free agency i think this defense will be alot better with all the injured guys comin back especially webster who has something to prove. with all the rookies who turned out to be playmakers and another solid draft from marvin... i say fear the D with or without any pickups in free agency.

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I'm sorry, I like Rudi and all, but if I had to choose between Corey Simon and Sammy Knight or Rudi Johnson, well...Kenny Watson is the future.

BN1281

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Bengals Team Report

1/9/2005

By Chick Ludwig

Dayton Daily News

A shakeup at LB is coming with the emergence of rookie Landon Johnson, the improving health of MLB Nate Webster and the struggles of veteran Kevin Hardy. Webster is due to reclaim his starting spot after spending most of the season on IR with a knee injury. That makes Johnson a candidate to move to the right outside, where he can utilize his speed to make more plays upfield. Johnson is tough with good instincts. He led the club in tackles as Webster's replacement in the middle, but that's not his ideal position. He's perfect for the weak side because, at 227 pounds, he has the range to cover and the speed to rush the quarterback. Brian Simmons has the versatility to play all three positions. He'd fit best on the strong side in place of Hardy, who has lost a step and can't close quickly anymore. . . .

WR Peter Warrick holds the key to the offense's future. If the broken bone beneath Warrick's left knee fully heals, he'll return to the slot and take some pressure off of speedy Pro Bowl WR Chad Johnson. If Warrick can't get all his quickness and speed back, the club will need to address the WR position in free agency and the draft. . . .

Maintaining continuity on the offensive line is critical to the development of QB Carson Palmer. That's why re-signing free agent C Rich Braham is a must. Braham is a warrior whose toughness and supreme knowledge of the offense provides Palmer a comfort level the club can't afford to be without.

FREE AGENT BUZZ: A run-stuffing DT and hard-hitting SS are needed to contain the big, strong tailbacks in the run-oriented AFC North. DT Corey Simon (Eagles) would be a perfect fit in a rotation with John Thornton and Langston Moore because he's strong, active and disruptive. Simon gets instant leverage with his size and strength, shows good gap discipline and does a fine job of anchoring at the point of attack and penetrating the backfield. Simon's ability to take on two blockers frees up DEs Duane Clemons, Justin Smith and Robert Geathers for more sacks. Strong safety is an area that needs an upgrade. Rogers Beckett and Kim Herring are solid veterans, but neither is an enforcer. SS Sammy Knight (Dolphins) is an attractive candidate because he's an aggressive hitter and tackler who doesn't give up yards after contact. He's the type of player who will wrestle Jamal Lewis and Jerome Bettis to the ground when the club puts eight defenders near the line of scrimmage.

There's a grab bag of LB's currently on the IR, including Khalid Abdulah. With Johnson performing as well as he did underweight and out of position and Miller likely to gain some ballast in the off-season, the Bengals ought to be able to put together a quite respectable unit with the pieces they have. An upgrade here or there would be a bonus.

I go back and forth about the value of signing Rudi Johnson. Lately, his work-horse, team-chemistry, and marquee value had me leaning toward favoring signing him. But, as I consider the issues in the piece above, and I watch guys who bring more dimensions to the backfield in the playoffs - receiving, bouncing outside when the inside is stuffed, cutting back against the grain, etc. - I'm thinking that signing Johnson should not stand in the way of addressing other key issues.

Put a good, active, disruptive tackle like Simon in the rotation, shore up the safety position, address OL depth and quality of the interior, make sure the receiver position is solid, and Rudi becomes something of a luxury. With a quarterback like Palmer - and him having a whole season and the off-season to get a better handle on the offense - you just don't need a guy to hand the ball to over and over again. In fact, you probably get some drop-off doing that.

Rudi was an obscure kick returner before Corey Dillon went down - running backs can be found. You've got Perry, Watson and the kid from WVA in the backfield now, and you can find others on the waiver wire, in the 3rd or 4th round of the draft or elsewhere that are serviceable. If you've got backs that can catch and operate in space, the QB is even more effective. Good schemes, a good line and improved TE play really open up the offense to not being dependent on single high-priced back. The style of the running game and overall offense may need to change without Rudi, but it can still be effective.

Rudi Johnson was a useful part of this years team, but the team won the 8 games it did because it is getting to be solid overall. Taking it to the next level should only involve Rudi if his price-tag doesn't get in the way of continuing the solidification process across the board. The running game - or more importantly, the running back position - can still be solid without Rudi.

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Here is the deal with Corey Simon (or any other Philadelphia Eagle for that matter). If you want to sign him, cool, but make sure you aren't paying much, if any, more than the Eagles are willing to pay. That front office knows what they're doing, and there is a long history of former Eagles chasing big contracts with other teams and becoming FA busts. This rule of course assumes that the Eagles have the cap space to offer a fair contract, and I'm pretty sure they do this offseason. I'd be real cautious signing Simon...

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Rudi was an obscure kick returner before Corey Dillon went down - running backs can be found.

Without a doubt they can be found in great numbers, but Rudi is a good running back that Marvin Lewis seems to like a great deal. For that reason alone I suspect Rudi will be a Bengal for at least the next few years. Marvin surrounds himself with players he likes. James, Geathers and O'Neal are examples of this. I don't expect any of these guys to go anywhere anytime soon!

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I think it was phillygirl who noted a couple weeks back that Simon had already termed a $6 million/year deal with a $10 million signing bonus offered by the Eagles "an insult."

Now, to put that in perspective, the '04 franchise tag number for DTs was $5.6 million/year.

So I don't see him in stripes.

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I think it was phillygirl who noted a couple weeks back that Simon had already termed a $6 million/year deal with a $10 million signing bonus offered by the Eagles "an insult."

Now, to put that in perspective, the '04 franchise tag number for DTs was $5.6 million/year.

So I don't see him in stripes.

Did they provide a link ?

I don`t see how a player that is offered more than

fair market price could be "insulted" by that ? :blink:

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Only thing I could find (so far) on it was before

training camp.

Simon, 27, is scheduled to earn $535,000 this year, the last of the contract he signed after the Eagles chose him with the sixth overall pick in the 2000 draft. The original deal was for $11 million and included a $6.2 million signing bonus.

Last season, Simon earned his first Pro Bowl berth after leading the Eagles with seven sacks, second in the NFL among defensive tackles behind Atlanta's Ellis Johnson, who had eight.

Over his 4-year career Simon has missed only two games and has 26 sacks, fourth on the Eagles all-time list among tackles.

LaRoi Glover of New Orleans and Warren Sapp of Oakland are the only tackles with more sacks than Simon over that span. This season, Glover is taking home a base salary of $3.5 million. In March, the Raiders signed Sapp to a 7-year, $36.6 million contract that included a $7 million signing bonus.

http://www.sportsline.com/nfl/story/7538978

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If i were marvin then draft clarett and see what happens

F**K Clarett !! I don't give a rats a$$ how good this kid turns out to be, I don't want him anywhere near this team. I hope someone does take a chance on him, just to see him get F**KING CRUSHED by someone. What a BITCH !!!

WHODEY !!!

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Ummm that was back in MAY 2004 !!! (almost 8 months ago)

The article I posted was in July 2004 !!!

Hell I read a month ago that Rudi "wants" a 3 year $17 million dollar

deal....does that make it fact ?

I`m sure tha Simon was just miffed to see them give Jevon Kearse

so much money for what he had done for the Titans

when he wasn`t making jack for what he had done for the EAGLES.

Anyway Marvin seems to like Simon alot. IF he can get it done

then great...if not then great.

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Ummm that was back in MAY 2004 !!! (almost 8 months ago)

The article I posted was in July 2004 !!!

Yes, dear. :rolleyes: Most teams try to nail down key potential FAs before their contracts are up (see Johnson, Rudi, early 2004). You asked for a source for the $10 million signing bonus, I provided it (local Philly radio, for those who can't be bothered to click the thread). The story, and its date, was not an issue.

Hell I read a month ago that Rudi "wants" a 3 year $17 million dollar

deal....does that make it fact ?

Did I say it was a fact? (No.) Did you ask for a link? (Yes.) Did I provide one? (Yes.) Are we done now? (Yes.)

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Rudi was an obscure kick returner before Corey Dillon went down - running backs can be found.

Without a doubt they can be found in great numbers, but Rudi is a good running back that Marvin Lewis seems to like a great deal. For that reason alone I suspect Rudi will be a Bengal for at least the next few years. Marvin surrounds himself with players he likes. James, Geathers and O'Neal are examples of this. I don't expect any of these guys to go anywhere anytime soon!

Good point.

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