Who we Cut from Bengals.com ...

[JPW]

GEOFF HOBSON

Clemons suspended as D-Line revamps

9/3/2005 - 9-3-05, 2:55 p.m.

BY GEOFF HOBSON

The biggest surprises on Bengals Cutdown Day sprouted along the defensive line Saturday, where end Duane Clemons has been suspended by the NFL for the first four games of the season and tackle Langston Moore was released despite starting eight games last season.

In the other big roster moves, Craig Krenzel won the No. 3 quarterback job despite completing 20 percent fewer passes than Casey Bramlet, and linebacker Caleb Miller is going to miss the first six weeks of the season as he rehabs his ankle on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list. But the 53-man roster and the eight-man practice squad truly won’t be finalized until the Bengals are done scouring the waiver wire Sunday night.

Head coach Marvin Lewis fired the warning short earlier in the week when he said that he was going to attack complacency and throw out the past two seasons in evaluations. About 48 hours later, the Bengals cut former No. 1 pick Peter Warrick and on Saturday they let go two Lewis draft picks in Moore, a sixth in 2003, and Bramlet, a seventh in 2004, and last year’s kick returner, Cliff Russell.

The 320-pound Shaun Smith, who played well in the preseason games after getting picked up off waivers from New Orleans late last season, replaces Moore.

Several of the players cut Saturday are going to return in the next couple of days. Of the 13 players released, all but Moore and Russell are eligible for the practice squad.

Some players who battled injuries in training camp made it. Sixth-rounder Tab Perry, a wide receiver from UCLA who missed the two middle preseason games with a hip flexor, made it while Russell and Jamall Broussard didn’t. Cornerback Greg Brooks, who didn’t play until Friday night with a broken hand after missing all of his rookie year last season on injured reserve, made it over Patrick Body and Brandon Williams. Defensive tackle Matthias Askew, who didn’t return to practice until mid-August with an injured foot, re-claims his backup spot.

The Clemons’ suspension paved the way for seventh-rounder Jonathan Fanene, who returned to practice the same day as Askew with his hamstring injury.

Two rookies who were picked up during camp, but could very well return on the practice squad, linebacker Derek Curry and wide receiver Dante Ridgeway, were released. Two Louisville products who impressed all camp long, University of Louisville fullback/tight end Ronnie Ghent and an Indiana safety bred in Louisville, Herana-Daze Jones, didn’t survive the numbers game but will likely surface on the squad if they clear waivers.

Three guys who would have made it if the club had an extra spot at their positions, running back Quincy Wilson, kicker Carter Warley and tackle Pete Lougheed were also released.

Clemons, believed to be the first Bengal suspended for four games by the league since Tremain Mack in 1999, can attend meetings and lift weights during his suspension. But he can’t attend practice or go to games. He’s eligible to play again in the Bengals’ fifth game of the season on Sunday night, Oct. 9 in Jacksonville.

[JPW]

So WTF was Clemons suspended for, anybody know ?

[Stripes]

I'm very surprised. I guess I can just forget about liking Cliff Russell. Krenzel makes it over Bramlet? Wow. The most surprising thing is the cutting of Langston Moore in my opinion. No idea why Clemons was suspended.

[schweinhart]

I'm not finding anything on Big Duane.

4 games gotta figure it's either steroids or other substance.

[schweinhart]

The 320-pound Shaun Smith, who played well in the preseason games after getting picked up off waivers from New Orleans late last season, replaces Moore.

Hell yeah :player:

[JPW]

I'm not finding anything on Big Duane.

4 games gotta figure it's either steroids or other substance.

Well, I kind of like being able to keep Fanene anyway.

[rizzy]

The Cincinnati Bengals have been notified by the NFL that DE Duane Clemons has been suspended without pay for the first four regular season games of 2005, for violating the NFL Substance Abuse Policy.

[JPW]

I'm very surprised.  I guess I can just forget about liking Cliff Russell.  Krenzel makes it over Bramlet?  Wow.  The most surprising thing is the cutting of Langston Moore in my opinion.  No idea why Clemons was suspended.

Well I think we knew that Russell would probably be the odd man out, loved his speed but he never did really "shine" even on returns.

I hate to see Moore go, he always seemed to give %100 and he played fairly well last season, but Smith has played well this preseason and I really like having the extra bulk on the line, so I would say that was a good move.

I like keeping Brooks, two guys I really hope that we can keep for the PS are Body and Indiana Jones, we'll see about that in a few days.

So far so good IMO ...

[HoosierCat]

Only move that semi-surprises me is cutting Moore loose...but someone had to go there and it was going to be him, Smith or Askew.

Bramlet will clear waivers and be resigned to the PS. Ghent, Body, Williams, Jones are also PS material if they clear.

The Clemons thing tho...that's outta left field...

[Bengalbob]

Sorry for taking this off topic and for my ignorance, but does anyone know how many players we can carry on the practice squad? Also, what are the terms? Can players be moved back and forth between the practice squad and the 53 man roster?

[TJJackson]

These cuts suck.

Langston Moore can potentially start. Period. He'll be signed within a week somewhere else. Askew's done nothing but collect paychecks. Geez.

Bramlet waaaaaaAAAAAY outperformed Krenzel. Very bad move.

Tab Perry has done nothing but managed to get drafted. Terrible choice over mich more deserving players (like Russell)

Brandon Williams is one of the suprise stories of camp, and should have made this roster on speed and special teams give-it-all alone.

I feel bad for Quincy Wilson, but know he'll be on someone's practice squad, maybe even someone's active roster, soon enough. Hopefully ours. On the other hand, I am glad the club recognized the value of Kenny Watson. It's hard to complain about this one, as we found ourselves in the position of having too many top-quality tailbacks.

Had Clemons not been suspended, I'm fairly certain Fanene would have been cut. We'll see if that bears out in 4 weeks when Clemon's returns, although I'm sure marvin is livid about the substance abuse. He may just cut him at that point as a message to the rest of the team.....

I had long hoped Body would make the squad, but remain all but certain he'll be signed to the practice squad.

Any word on the situation with the punter(s)?

[JPW]

Sorry for taking this off topic and for my ignorance, but does anyone know how many players we can carry on the practice squad?  Also, what are the terms?  Can players be moved back and forth between the practice squad and the 53 man roster?

Somebody correct me if I am wrong, I believe that the PS can now be 8 players and that you can cut someone from your 53 man roster and bring up a player from any team's PS at any time.

To place a player from your 53 man roster on to your PS you have to cut him first and he has to clear waivers before being re-signed to the PS.

[membengal]

These cuts suck.

Langston Moore can potentially start. Period. He'll be signed within a week somewhere else. Askew's done nothing but collect paychecks. Geez.

Bramlet waaaaaaAAAAAY outperformed Krenzel. Very bad move.

Tab Perry has done nothing but managed to get drafted. Terrible choice over mich more deserving players (like Russell)

Brandon Williams is one of the suprise stories of camp, and should have made this roster on speed and special teams give-it-all alone.

I feel bad for Quincy Wilson, but know he'll be on someone's practice squad, maybe even someone's active roster, soon enough. Hopefully ours. On the other hand, I am glad the club recognized the value of Kenny Watson. It's hard to complain about this one, as we found ourselves in the position of having too many top-quality tailbacks.

Had Clemons not been suspended, I'm fairly certain Fanene would have been cut. We'll see if that bears out in 4 weeks when Clemon's returns, although I'm sure marvin is livid about the substance abuse. He may just cut him at that point as a message to the rest of the team.....

I had long hoped Body would make the squad, but remain all but certain he'll be signed to the practice squad.

Any word on the situation with the punter(s)?

(Rolls eyes, wonders how many practices TJ attended and how many sessions of practice film he watched with the coaches...)

[TJJackson]

(Rolls eyes, wonders how many practices TJ attended and how many sessions of practice film he watched with the coaches...)

(Rolls eyes, wonders how many posts membengal has read here, also wonders why membengal can't understand why a bengal fan might express an opinion on a forum expressly designed for fans to express opinions)

[bengalbutch]

I don't have a problem with any of the cuts. I would have liked to have keep Jones, Body and Williams, but Marvin see's them everyday. It's actually a good thing when we start to cut good players.

[JPW]

These cuts suck.

Langston Moore can potentially start.  Period.  He'll be signed within a week somewhere else.  Askew's done nothing but collect paychecks.  Geez.

Bramlet waaaaaaAAAAAY outperformed Krenzel.  Very bad move.

Tab Perry has done nothing but managed to get drafted.  Terrible choice over mich more deserving players (like Russell)

Brandon Williams is one of the suprise stories of camp, and should have made this roster on speed and special teams give-it-all alone.

I feel bad for Quincy Wilson, but know he'll be on someone's practice squad, maybe even someone's active roster, soon enough.  Hopefully ours.  On the other hand, I am glad the club recognized the value of Kenny Watson.  It's hard to complain about this one, as we found ourselves in the position of having too many  top-quality tailbacks. 

Had Clemons not been suspended, I'm fairly certain Fanene would have been cut.  We'll see if that bears out in 4 weeks when Clemon's returns, although I'm sure marvin is livid about the substance abuse.  He may just cut him at that point as a message to the rest of the team.....

I had long hoped Body would make the squad, but remain all but certain he'll be signed to the practice squad.

Any word on the situation with the punter(s)?

I hate to lose Langston Moore to but it is way too early to give up on Askew, he could become a Very Good defensive tackle, he has all the tools that you look for.

Just how bad of a move can it be to pick one third string QB over another one ?

I guess that they think Krenzel has more upside, but I wouldn't have been upset if they had cut both of them.

IMO, Tab Perry does have more upside than Russell, a lot more I hope.

I liked Brandon Williams' speed to but on the other hand he is just out of position too much, I am happy with keeping Brooks.

Quincy Wilson will find a place, but I don't think that another team can sign him directly to their PS, I hope no one picks him up for their 53 man roster and we get him back on our PS.

I don't know what the deal will be with Clemons now but am happy that Fanene gets a shot, he has an outstanding combination of speed and size.

As for the kickers, rookie K Carter Warley was cut.

All and all I think we did pretty well, I just hope that we get the guys we want back for the PS.

[DontPushMe]

In the other big roster moves, Craig Krenzel won the No. 3 quarterback job despite completing 20 percent fewer passes than Casey Bramlet

This is the height of stupidity. Why didnt they just cut Bramlet after signing Krenzel to see if he could catch on somewhere else while he still had the chance. If they had any plans on it being a fair competition between Bramlet and Krenzel, Bramlet would have made the team. Krenzel looked lost all pre-season, while Bramlet actually made things happen. This is the only roster move I really disagree with. Its clear to me that they planned on keeping Krenzel all along, yet they faked like it was an actual competition.

The rest are fine, I expected S. Smith to make the team over Moore, Moore was overrated last year. At CB I kinda prefered Brandon Williams for special teams reasons, but he looked lost in coverage half the time.

[Stripes]

In the other big roster moves, Craig Krenzel won the No. 3 quarterback job despite completing 20 percent fewer passes than Casey Bramlet

This is the height of stupidity. Why didnt they just cut Bramlet after signing Krenzel to see if he could catch on somewhere else while he still had the chance. If they had any plans on it being a fair competition between Bramlet and Krenzel, Bramlet would have made the team. Krenzel looked lost all pre-season, while Bramlet actually made things happen. This is the only roster move I really disagree with. Its clear to me that they planned on keeping Krenzel all along, yet they faked like it was an actual competition.

The rest are fine, I expected S. Smith to make the team over Moore, Moore was overrated last year. At CB I kinda prefered Brandon Williams for special teams reasons, but he looked lost in coverage half the time.

I....I......uhhh......agree..... What just happened?

[HoosierCat]

In the other big roster moves, Craig Krenzel won the No. 3 quarterback job despite completing 20 percent fewer passes than Casey Bramlet

This is the height of stupidity. Why didnt they just cut Bramlet after signing Krenzel to see if he could catch on somewhere else while he still had the chance.

If they cut Krenzel, he almost certainly gets snagged by someone (Bears, Lions, come to mind) since he's cheap and has actual NFL experience (and a 3-2 record as a starter).

Bramlet, OTOH, will almost certainly clear waivers and be re-signed to the PS.

But in any event, this is hardly "the height of stupidity." Sheesh, if we ever get in a situation where we have to go to our 3rd string QB, we're f**ked anyhow.

[Stripes]

In the other big roster moves, Craig Krenzel won the No. 3 quarterback job despite completing 20 percent fewer passes than Casey Bramlet

This is the height of stupidity. Why didnt they just cut Bramlet after signing Krenzel to see if he could catch on somewhere else while he still had the chance.

If they cut Krenzel, he almost certainly gets snagged by someone (Bears, Lions, come to mind) since he's cheap and has actual NFL experience (and a 3-2 record as a starter).

Bramlet, OTOH, will almost certainly clear waivers and be re-signed to the PS.

But in any event, this is hardly "the height of stupidity." Sheesh, if we ever get in a situation where we have to go to our 3rd string QB, we're f**ked anyhow.

Good point. I'm saved.

[AMC]

Krenzel over Bramlet was a move made with next year in mind....If they cannot resign Kitna, Lewis was more comfortable with Krenzels NFL game experience as no. 2?????

[redsfan2]

Only move that semi-surprises me is cutting Moore loose...but someone had to go there and it was going to be him, Smith or Askew.

Bramlet will clear waivers and be resigned to the PS. Ghent, Body, Williams, Jones are also PS material if they clear.

The Clemons thing tho...that's outta left field...

Kinda have to agree with all three points.

Not ready to give up on Askew .... yet and as noted, Smith has had a really good pre season.

Bramlet Will clear waivers, and Krenzel wouldn't have. I remember him form Ohio .... he was always odd man out there too, and got the job done most every time they put the ball in his hands.

Clemmons ? Substance abuse ???? Did he beat up a bag of coke ??? or slap a joint around ???

I can't remember hearing coach Lewis talk about drugs ... the policy etc. Got any insights as to possible ramifications this may have ????????

Glad Fanene stuck, but this is a hell of a way to do it.

[HoosierCat]

Clemmons ? Substance abuse ???? Did he beat up a bag of coke ??? or slap a joint around ???

The rumor is that it's 'roids. Haven't seen anything official yet, tho.

[HoosierCat]

Lenny's report...

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/stor..._len&id=2150874

Doesn't say what the "substance" is but does note a four-game suspension indicates it's a repeat violation.

[Indycat]

Steroids abuse is 4 games for 1st offense.

Repeat violation indicates drug abuse.