TJ Will Not be Back Next Season

[BengalszoneBilly]

I would be ecstatic to see the Bengals pick up Troy Williamson in the first.

Whatever it takes Marvin!! Just please, please make it so we aren't twenty-freakin'-sixth against the run next season. If it starts happening again, that's when the gun barrel goes in the mouth, and I swear I'm pullin' the trigger this time!!

BLAMMO!!!

[kingwilly]

hear that...?

Chuga-chugga-Chuga-chugga-

Chuga-chugga-Chuga-chugga-Chuga-chugga-

Chuga-chugga-Chuga-chugga-Chuga-chugga-Chuga-chugga-

The Shazor train has another rider...punch my ticket. This guy is a bad-azzz!

[BengalNation1281]

All aboard!

BN1281

[ArmyBengal]

SHAZOR the RAZOR cuttin' F**KERS DOWN !!!!

WHODEY !!!

[ShulaSteakhouse]

Funny people said the same things about "Shazor" as they did about Justin Smith coming out of college. "He's a beast and he's going to tear up the league!"

And gee this time last year people here were saying TJ and Warrick were expendible because "K-dub" was going to bust out and have a great year (pfft).

Ahh the internet and their posters' fascination with rookies and "potential" draft picks..."cut Rudi! cut TJ! cut Warrick! They cost too much and we can just draft their replacements! Top 10 RB's are a dime a dozen!

And Joisey, I'm not going to argue with you about Shade and Ambrose beyond this, they were the only good DB's this team had at the time and as a result of them leaving - the defense went into a downard spiral for years. Brown let Shade go over a couple hundred thousand $. No one said they were world beaters but Ambrose was arguably the best defensive player when he left here. Shade did very well for the Skins the next few years. And until Marvin came in and signed some "expensive" FA's, the DB's were a complete joke for 3-4 years.

Shade had a great year when he left here and it was so typical of the cheap a$$ Brown family to draft a guy, wait til he finally gets it and does what they drafted him for - then shove him out the door when he actually dares to ask for the $ he deserves.

Some of you guys act like Mike Brown's wallet is your wallet! Get over it! I don't give a crap if they have to over-pay guys, it's what every other winning team does and they get through it - the Bengals', AGAIN, NEED TO QUIT RELYING ON ROOKIES AND UNPROVEN DRAFT PICKS AND KEEP THEIR VETERAN CORE PLAYERS!!!

No matter as I know Marvin is with me on that, all one has to do is look at all the FA's he's brought in here one way or another the last two seasons. And name one rookie who hasn't earned their spot on the team with their play on the field - versus their draft status - since he's been here? Even Palmer had to show them something for a year's worth of practices first.

THAT is the way to manage a roster and run a team - not all you brainwashed people who think like Mike Brown's cheap a$$ and are naive enough to think mediocre talent in this year's draft will come in and fill holes immediately. When that happens it's a bonus - it's NOT the way to build a winning team by any means by relying on guys who have never played a down in the NFL.

Eeeeveryone's a draft/NFL guru on the internet I tell ya.

Haven't the last 15 years taught anyone anything in this town?

[bengalboomer7]

Damn Shula calm down bro, it's the offseason, all we have right now is speculation to talk about and since the draft is coming up and FA is coming up everyone(including me) is playing mad scientist GM. Some of us (like me) already know that we don't know what the hell we're talking about, but if we didn't talk our s**t we wouldn't have a bengalszone!

It's all good, just browse you a couple of Mock drafts and drink the Kool-Aid!!

[chrishcovga]

Funny people said the same things about "Shazor" as they did about Justin Smith coming out of college. "He's a beast and he's going to tear up the league!"

And gee this time last year people here were saying TJ and Warrick were expendible because "K-dub" was going to bust out and have a great year (pfft).

Ahh the internet and their posters' fascination with rookies and "potential" draft picks..."cut Rudi! cut TJ! cut Warrick! They cost too much and we can just draft their replacements! Top 10 RB's are a dime a dozen!

And Joisey, I'm not going to argue with you about Shade and Ambrose beyond this, they were the only good DB's this team had at the time and as a result of them leaving - the defense went into a downard spiral for years. Brown let Shade go over a couple hundred thousand $. No one said they were world beaters but Ambrose was arguably the best defensive player when he left here. Shade did very well for the Skins the next few years. And until Marvin came in and signed some "expensive" FA's, the DB's were a complete joke for 3-4 years.

Shade had a great year when he left here and it was so typical of the cheap a$$ Brown family to draft a guy, wait til he finally gets it and does what they drafted him for - then shove him out the door when he actually dares to ask for the $ he deserves.

Some of you guys act like Mike Brown's wallet is your wallet! Get over it! I don't give a crap if they have to over-pay guys, it's what every other winning team does and they get through it - the Bengals', AGAIN, NEED TO QUIT RELYING ON ROOKIES AND UNPROVEN DRAFT PICKS AND KEEP THEIR VETERAN CORE PLAYERS!!!

No matter as I know Marvin is with me on that, all one has to do is look at all the FA's he's brought in here one way or another the last two seasons. And name one rookie who hasn't earned their spot on the team with their play on the field - versus their draft status - since he's been here? Even Palmer had to show them something for a year's worth of practices first.

THAT is the way to manage a roster and run a team - not all you brainwashed people who think like Mike Brown's cheap a$$ and are naive enough to think mediocre talent in this year's draft will come in and fill holes immediately. When that happens it's a bonus - it's NOT the way to build a winning team by any means by relying on guys who have never played a down in the NFL.

Eeeeveryone's a draft/NFL guru on the internet I tell ya.

Haven't the last 15 years taught anyone anything in this town?

Good points, except for the fact that the majority of NFL starters were selected through the draft. AS a matter of fact the statistic goes even higher when it comes to Pro Bowlers being high draft picks.

* That's why the NFL DRAFT works !!!!!

And another thing, who says these players are unproven?? Do you know how physically gifted you have to be to excel for a couple of seconds every down for every game...? Some guys wash out, most don't however. That's the reason why kids are scouted, recruited, and their entire careers really start from Highschool.

The Cincinnati Bengals have been the victim of poor management and coaching. Plain and simple. It's the reason why our drafts suffered for so long, because Mike Browns' cheap A$$ wouldn't hire a scouting department ! Do you think it's just a coincidence that Marvin increased scouting and as a Result we've posted back to back non losing seasons for the first time since the '89/90 90/91 seasons ?

New England has shown the example that Cincinnati needs to follow. The highest paid player on the Patiots ( Ty Law ) didn't even play most of the season and they still won the Super Bowl.

We're in a position to have our best players signed to long term contracts, and for those that don't then BYE... cause the other 31 teams are in the same position as we are, and they're looking to the draft for their long term answers ! :player:

[BengalNation1281]

Funny people said the same things about "Shazor" as they did about Justin Smith coming out of college. "He's a beast and he's going to tear up the league!"

And gee this time last year people here were saying TJ and Warrick were expendible because "K-dub" was going to bust out and have a great year (pfft).

Ahh the internet and their posters' fascination with rookies and "potential" draft picks..."cut Rudi! cut TJ! cut Warrick! They cost too much and we can just draft their replacements! Top 10 RB's are a dime a dozen!

And Joisey, I'm not going to argue with you about Shade and Ambrose beyond this, they were the only good DB's this team had at the time and as a result of them leaving - the defense went into a downard spiral for years. Brown let Shade go over a couple hundred thousand $. No one said they were world beaters but Ambrose was arguably the best defensive player when he left here. Shade did very well for the Skins the next few years. And until Marvin came in and signed some "expensive" FA's, the DB's were a complete joke for 3-4 years.

Shade had a great year when he left here and it was so typical of the cheap a$$ Brown family to draft a guy, wait til he finally gets it and does what they drafted him for - then shove him out the door when he actually dares to ask for the $ he deserves.

Some of you guys act like Mike Brown's wallet is your wallet! Get over it! I don't give a crap if they have to over-pay guys, it's what every other winning team does and they get through it - the Bengals', AGAIN, NEED TO QUIT RELYING ON ROOKIES AND UNPROVEN DRAFT PICKS AND KEEP THEIR VETERAN CORE PLAYERS!!!

No matter as I know Marvin is with me on that, all one has to do is look at all the FA's he's brought in here one way or another the last two seasons. And name one rookie who hasn't earned their spot on the team with their play on the field - versus their draft status - since he's been here? Even Palmer had to show them something for a year's worth of practices first.

THAT is the way to manage a roster and run a team - not all you brainwashed people who think like Mike Brown's cheap a$$ and are naive enough to think mediocre talent in this year's draft will come in and fill holes immediately. When that happens it's a bonus - it's NOT the way to build a winning team by any means by relying on guys who have never played a down in the NFL.

Eeeeveryone's a draft/NFL guru on the internet I tell ya.

Haven't the last 15 years taught anyone anything in this town?

Hey, I never said that Shazor wasn't going to be a project, or that he is a beast and is going to tear up the league. I just think that we should draft him...I like his size and his stats, and when I saw him play I was highly impressed.

And I certainly never said anything about cutting Warrick or Rudi. If they want too much money then they should go where they can get it, but I would like to see Warrick, Rudi and TJ all stay and keep this thing going. I like Rudi, but if he is asking for more than he is worth then what can the team do? I know it has been said before, but we need defensive help more than we need to pay Rudi more than he is worth. Having said that, I want him to stay if we can keep him.

We all have guys that we want in the draft. Mine just happens to be Shazor, and I'm obviously not alone.

BN1281

[HairOnFire]

First, that picture of Shula is both the funniest and saddest thing I've ever seen. Not sure how it manages to be both things at the same time, but everytime I see it I laugh....nervously.

Last, after reading dozens of posts I think Steakhouse and I are walking in lockstep on almost all issues, and at the candy covered chocolate core of most of them is how to handle Rudi. I can speak only for myself, but it's pretty frustrating to hear so many Bengal posters downgrade what Rudi has meant to this team over the last two seasons. Even worse is listening to posters opine that the quickest way to the playoffs is to let Rudi walk, start Perry even if he can't stand up, draft a TE in the first round, draft a WR in the first round, trade for Randy Moss, sign Corey Simon in FA, etcetera...blah, blah, blah. Regardless of your own personal wants it seems like for most Bengal fans every offseason fantasy starts with letting Rudi walk while the team pockets a few bucks. Simply put, those saved dollars are then used to finance every fantasy a Bengal fan can think of. But if you hate the idea from the start...and I do...then you're probably tempted to scream a little bit.

Or laugh nervously, again.

[bengalboomer7]

I agree with you, Hairon fire, but if some people didn't do that then our bengals board would be pretty lonely and pretty bare!

[jjakq27]

If they let both these players walk, it'll be just like old times again, and tells me nothing here has changed really.  I don't care what kind of excuses people make for it.

How's that?

Like when they let Leon walk after the infamous,"I'll flip burgers before I'll play for the Bengals" comment?Wait-no they didn't.

Or maybe you are referring to when the Bengals let Carl Pickens walk?Errrrrrrrr-wait-they over paid him.

If they let them leave rather than over paying them,it will be exactly the OPPOSITE of old times,and things have changed.

That's the funny thing about people's perception of Mike Brown and Co. The signed guys like James Francis, Carl Pickens and Corey Dillon when they clearly had no interest in being here and should have traded them or cut them. Then when a guy like Spikes walks or they don't sign Sapp then they are cheap. I'm not defending him but it seems like all of the good moves are Marvin's or they are overlooked and all of the bad ones must have come from MB. I am so confused.

[wookie]

FA is a quick fix, sometimes, and almost as much of a crap-shoot as the draft. Once in a while you see a guy come in and perform for his new team the way he performed for his old team...almost as often the guy gets hurt, or can't gel with his new teammates and coaches and either fades out or becomes an "ordinary" player.

The draft can sometimes produce an instant star, but for the most part you are building depth and grooming players to become stars in the league. Guys like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed took a little bit of time to develop, less than some, but now they are monsters at their positions. Maybe the Bengals already have the guy they need and he'll break out this year, or maybe they need to draft that guy and plug in a FA for a couple of years, whichever way you go you don't get a magic fix every time but hopefully you get that team that can withstand injuries and still play at a high level like the Patriots. Thats one point Aikman was making about the Cowboys, he said they had more depth than the Patriots of today. They had guys who were 2nd and 3rd string who, when they got their chance to play either as a result of losing a starter to injury or FA, became Pro Bowlers when they got a chance to start.

I'd hate to see TJ go simply because Palmer used him as a security blanket. If CJ was being double teamed he knew he could find TJ and TJ would make the catch. They became familiar with each other and now have that QB-WR relationship that works on the field. Plug in 15-20 other possesion revievers and you might get come close to what TJ was finally able to do last year.

Rudi is a really good running back. He set the mark for rushing yards in a season for a Bengal, and he's not injury prone. However, if he can't stay I don't see where signing another RB would be hazardous. The Bengals line is good at creating running lanes for their backs. I'd like to see a RB in there who can improvise on the field, find the hole, cut left if nothing is open on the right, make something out of nothing. Maybe Rudi can improve his game and do those things, or maybe the Bengals can find that guy out there. This year I saw Rudi run into the backs of his lineman way too often cause he only runs to the spot he was supposed to run to even if the hole didn't develop. The reason he got the yards he did is because the line was good enough to create those holes, and he's strong enough to get YAC, and fast enough to run away from some tacklers.

I was one of the most outspoken "cut TJ" people last season, but he found his niche and proved me wrong. I'd like to see him stay.

[wookie]

Time to start the Shazor train:

Shazor. Shazor. Shazor. Shazor.

C'mon, say it with me...

BN1281

I read a little about Shazor, and I have to admit he's an interesting prospect. His downsides were that he gets a little too aggressive at times and doesn't say in his lane which gets him beat, and he goes for the big hit too often and can miss the tackle, and that he may not have the speed to be left in 1 on 1 coverage. His upsides were that he is a punishing tackler who is built like a LB and he has the natural talent to develop into a great safety.

It said if you play regular games against TE's like Kellen Winslow, Todd Heap, Tony Gonzalez, or Antonio Gates then he'd be a good pick in the 3rd round. Since the Bengals are in the AFC North and play Heap and Winslow twice a year, and regularly have KC and SD on their schedule then he would definitly be worth drafting.