HOW SMART WAS IT ?

[Dadraftnick]

In the third round of the draft this year the Bengals drafted Chris Henry.They took Henry instead of adressing the DE,DT,or S positions.Dont get me wrong I think that Henry is a good player.But , when you have as many good WR's as the Bengals have,it makes no sense to waste a 3rd round pick on a guy that will likely not be activated most of the year,when they should have adressed one of the other three positions I named.Especially DE, when you cant get a pass rush on Cleveland's D line you know you need to do better.Chad and TJ start,Perry and Walters play special teams so that leaves Washington(who has played well this year and is the guy with expierence) or Henry to be activated every week.So my point is why use such a high pick on a WR that is not even being activated every week when you could have drafted a deffensive player that would have at least been activated. Chad and TJ have long term contracts so you know Henry will not be starting anytime soon.What the Bengals are likely doing is training Henry to be a good WR only to have him picked up by another team in free agency.Quite a few of the players drafted in the 3rd or later will be starting this year,others will be back ups,while Henry sits.Even if Henry plays then you are wasting Washington's talent.

[cincy9275]

it too early to tell on if drafting henrey was a good ideal

[PhunkE1]

I agree to a certain degree, but I believe Washington is a restricted FA after this year. They'll probably tender him the minimum offer and have him for 1 more year. I personally think that the Bengals are just trying to find another diamond in the ruff, like Chad. Chad had charecter issues coming out of Oregon State and slipped to the 2nd round. Henry had 1st round talent, but slipped to the 3rd round. I agree that getting a DT, DE or S would have made more since now, but the new regime has been adimate about not drafting players out of need and just drafting the best football player available. Obviously they didn't feel there was a DT, DE or S worth a 3rd round pick.

[HairOnFire]

I'd say it was very smart when you consider how many Bengal fans were pimping the idea of drafting a WR in the 1st round. No kidding.

Myself, I always liked the idea of drafting a wideout in the middle rounds and mentioned the 4th round specifically. That said, based solely upon the BPA theory it's hard to get upset at the idea of drafting Henry in the 3rd.

[CBin2k7]

At the time of the draft and throughout most of the summer it was unsure whether or not Washington was even going to be here. That said, I am sure the Bengals drafted the best player on the board for them.

I read an article no to long ago about drafting talent and plugging them in, instead of drafting to fill needs. The Patriots and the Bengals are two of the better drafting teams when it comes to talent and how many players they draft end up starting. Henry will be fine, it was only one game.

[kingwilly]

Drafting Henry in lieu of some other glaring needs you point out has some risk.

The first thing I think of is that Rookie DT's/DE's rarely really produce/start. Most rookie WR's don't either so in trying to solve the DE/DT issue in FA was what the Bengals have done to get starters (Robinson, Clemons, Thornton, Williams, and attempts at Sapp, Gardner, Simon). Other picks at DT/DE like Geathers, Patterson, Fanane, Askew may work out and start but not be forced to hurry up and start. The risk that I see is that we miss the chance to draft quality DL like Berrian, Kerney, Lavalais, etc.

The talent that Henry has is balanced by his previous immature antics and probably scared off many teams. The Bengals uncertainty about PW (hurt then cut), KW (will he ever step-up) left the Bengals with CJ, TJ and a cast of supporters, including Walter.

I liked the pick, once I saw his attitude was probably a result of the environment he was in that permitted him to be immature and pop-off. He will get no such latitude from ML. In fact he has been described as polite, friendly, quiet and respectful. Sounds to me like he is doing all the right things to make sure he has success and I attribute that to the environment he is now in.

As for missing out on other talented players, that is always a crapshoot. Ernest Shazor went undrafted after being prospected by national experts as an early 2nd rounder. Where is he now? Who knows? Craphoso Thorpe was a 4th rounder from FSU taken by the Chiefs, a team with need at WR. They cut him. DL’s Hawthorne and Ellison were both talked about here on the board as possible draftees. They both failed to make their teams. So it is hit or miss.

I'd like to think that ML and staff have done all they can to assure that the Bengals take players who can make the team and contribute in helping them win. As evidenced by the number of his drafted players still on the squad I'd make this claim: They have mostly been good if not excellent selections and they certainly will help the Bengals get to the next level.

[Stripes]

I think this was an excellent pick. With the pending release of Peter Warrick and the underachieving of Kelley Washington, we were bound to pick up a wideout. Not to mention, Palmer is still young, and he could use as many weapons as the drafters can get him.

[Dadraftnick]

I agree to a certain degree, but I believe Washington is a restricted FA after this year.  They'll probably tender him the minimum offer and have him for 1 more year.  I personally think that the Bengals are just trying to find another diamond in the ruff, like Chad.  Chad had charecter issues coming out of Oregon State and slipped to the 2nd round.  Henry had 1st round talent, but slipped to the 3rd round.  I agree that getting a DT, DE or S would have made more since now, but the new regime has been adimate about not drafting players out of need and just drafting the best football player available.  Obviously they didn't feel there was a DT, DE or S worth a 3rd round pick.

If you look at it ,the safeties just started to go off the board in the 2nd and 3rd round .Sean Considine and OJ Atogwe went in the 3rd or later and I am pretty sure both are starting for their teams. Dustin Fox (Ohio State) went in the 3rd.There were some DE's and DT's left.It makes more sense to take a guy that you need higher than you have him graded than to take a guy that you won't even use.Especially if you take a guy likely to start and surely contribute.

[turningpoint]

Well i'm very happy cause apperenlty the ravens were pissed about us taking him.

They had him slated as their 3rd round pick, and they don;t have him so i'm very happy, he'll be good give him a year. He's to scrawny right nowi bet he couldn't do 225 more then 5x.

[Dadraftnick]

First of all I doubt that the Ravens were taking Henry because, they drafted a WR with their first pick. And, what are you saying we should take who ever we think that the Ravens are picking so they wont get them?

[Dadraftnick]

I am not saying that Henry is not good.He is. He is just a luxury that this team did not need.WR's are the easiest position to find in the draft. TJ was a 7th round pick.Every NCAA team puts their best athelete at WR, almost every team has 2 or 3 good WR's.There will be plenty good WR's in next years draft.Hall of famer Steve Largent was an undrafted free agent when they had 12 rounds and was cut by several teams before he made the team.The Bengals could have used more defensive players,they were not in need of WR's.I read where one of you guys said that some people wanted the Bengals to draft a WR in the 1st round.Well,that was IF TJ did not sign,and even then it would have not made much sense. The point is not how good Henry will be some day.The point is how much good does it do to have so many good WR's when you need Defensive players.How much good does it do to have a good WR inactive(wheather its Henry of Washington) because you have too many good and one has to sit.When you could have a defensive player with that pick that would started and been an upgrade.The Bengals had to go to the waiver wire to get a S and were lucky that he fell in their lap.

[KiLBurn]

I liked the pick.

I'm pretty sure the Bengals already knew that Warrick would be gone.

The Bengals had already made it known that KDub was an underachiever, so far.

Chad switched to Drew Rosenhaus as his agent. (Read next year Chad will become Corey II).

TJ only had one good year under his belt.

Walter was, basically, an unknown commodity as a reciever.

We had some spare CB's that we were going to try to convert to SS. (Myles and Roberts) The upside of this would have been that the CB's already knew the defense.

[JohnsonX5]

It makes more sense to take a guy that you need higher than you have him graded than to take a guy that you won't even use.Especially if you take a guy  likely to start and surely contribute.

Dadraftnik - I understand where you're coming from. It comes down to drafting the best player available versus drafting for need. You obviously prefer drafting for need. If you care to read it, this is what sold me on the BPA theory and, as I recall, Marvin drafted Henry because he felt he was "by far the best player available at that point" (I think I remember him saying that). The link addresses exactly what you said in your quote.

Also, I'd like to add that I think some people take a much too literal interpretation of the BPA theory. For instance, if the best player available at 17 for the Bengals was a quarterback, of course we wouldn't take a quarterback. We'd draft the next best guy. As I understand it, the BPA theory actually has a lot of flexibility to it and, over the long run, is better than drafting for need.

[ShulaSteakhouse]

It makes more sense to take a guy that you need higher than you have him graded than to take a guy that you won't even use.Especially if you take a guy  likely to start and surely contribute.

Dadraftnik - I understand where you're coming from. It comes down to drafting the best player available versus drafting for need. You obviously prefer drafting for need. If you care to read it, this is what sold me on the BPA theory and, as I recall, Marvin drafted Henry because he felt he was "by far the best player available at that point" (I think I remember him saying that). The link addresses exactly what you said in your quote.

Also, I'd like to add that I think some people take a much too literal interpretation of the BPA theory. For instance, if the best player available at 17 for the Bengals was a quarterback, of course we wouldn't take a quarterback. We'd draft the next best guy. As I understand it, the BPA theory actually has a lot of flexibility to it and, over the long run, is better than drafting for need.

Yep, to think teams make picks based solely on the BPA theory is silly.

Obviously position and priorities play into the player's ranking.

If they have 3-4 top positions in need of addressing, certainly they, at whatever point, weigh the position of need against where the player is ranked over-all, and take the best over-all combination.

[John Stofa]

When you get that deep in the draft you aren't going to find a stud defensive linemen or DB, and we didn't need any more average players at those positions. So you take the best availaible athlete. And that was Chris Henry. If you don't like him yet, just wait. You will. He's going to be a STAR at some point, you'll see. I loved the pick the second we made it and I still do.

[turningpoint]

First of all I doubt that the Ravens were taking Henry because, they drafted a WR with their first pick. And, what are you saying we should take who ever we think that the Ravens are picking so they wont get them?

Didin't say that at all I'm hapy they don;t get him and we do the guy will be a stud he just needs to develop more muscle mass and he'll be flat out unstoppable.

[HairOnFire]

The point is not how good Henry will be some day.The point is how much good does it do to have so many good WR's when you need Defensive players.How much good does it do to have a good WR inactive(wheather its Henry of Washington) because you have too many good and one has to sit.

First, I think how good Chris Henry may be some day is exactly the point. Scott Pioli and Bill Belichick have both been quoted that they draft players with the idea of how much return they can expect to get in two or three years. In addition, they've also said that they'll consider drafting a replacement for a starter who may be playing at a Pro Bowl level based upon age and salary cap considerations. In the Bengals example I doubt Henry is going to supplant CJ or TJ anytime soon, but Warrick is toast already and this is almost certainly a make or break year for Washington. Even if he sticks next season there's room for both.

Last, I think you're making a bit too much out of Henry being held out of a game. He's a rookie. Despite his running and pass catching abilities his knowledge of the playbook may not be the best, he may still need work on route running, and I highly doubt that he's capable of looking at the defensive coverage and making the hot read required to stay on the same page with Palmer. So IMHO it's not fair to say that Henry is a luxury. Instead, I'd argue that the Bengals have the luxury of properly developing a rookie instead of throwing them into the fire ala Warrick and Dugans.

[bengalfreek]

I am not saying that Henry is not good.He is. He is just a luxury that this team did not need.WR's are the easiest position to find in the draft. TJ was a 7th round pick.Every NCAA team puts their best athelete at WR, almost every team has 2 or 3 good WR's.There will be plenty good WR's in next years draft.Hall of famer Steve Largent was an undrafted free agent when they had 12 rounds and was cut by several teams before he made the team.The Bengals could have used more defensive players,they were not in need of WR's.I read where one of you guys said that some people wanted the Bengals to draft a WR in the 1st round.Well,that was IF TJ did not sign,and even then it would have not made much sense. The point is not how good Henry will be some day.The point is how much good does it do to have so many good WR's when you need Defensive players.How much good does it do to have a good WR inactive(wheather its Henry of Washington) because you have too many good and one has to sit.When you could have a defensive player with that pick that would started and been an upgrade.The Bengals had to go to the waiver wire to get a S and were lucky that he fell in their lap.

I don't think the Bengals planned to take a WR in the third round. They were surprised when Henry was still there and rearranged their strategy to pick a player they considered far superior to any others available. Just as they did when Eric Steinbach was still available with the first pick of the second round two years ago.

[walzav29]

Great pick. By the time Hcad prices himself off of the team they will have a 3rd year explosive player named Chris Henry. It's what the Patriots and Eagles do. Marvin is putting together 1 hell of a core. Hell in 2 years he'll draft a quarterback.

[Rimington over Marino]

My interpretation of a team drafting well is picking guys like Henry and Askew, et al and give them a year or 2 to build up in knowledge and skills. In Henry's case he may have trouble learning the playbook. That is what I have read.

In all the years we sucked we always had the top 4 or 5 players drafted starting immediately. That is not good if you want to win consistently. Like Marvin said last year it was not in his plans to have Landon and Caleb or even Keiwan playing as much as they did. He had planned on using Herring and Beckett as the starters @ Safety. When Webster got hurt and Beckett had his concussions, even Deltha was nursing his ankle, the rookies had to jump in.

Marvin said he does not want rookies playing unless they earn it. Odell earned it this year. Pollack will get in if he earns it.

[jjakq27]

I believe that Henry was drafted as a possible replacement for Chad if he is no longer with the team (see Drew Rosenhaus). Also as an upgrade over Kelly Washington who has been unable to become much of a factor and also due to the concerns with Peter Warrick.

There is no need to rush this guy. We went defense with the first two picks and will reap the benefits immediately. Henry should not be counted on much this season.

[The_Next_Big_Thing]

What kind of pick was it? GENIUS. Look, Henry was the most talented player overall available at the time. Other teams he passed him over because of issues that didn't stem from his ABILITY but from his ATTITUDE. Marvin and Mike decided to take a guy who's talent was 1st round grade, and see if they could work him into the NFL.

Yes, we had talent at WR. We also had BIG questions. #1 Is Pdub done? (Answer: YES). #2 Is TJ for real? (Answer: YES). #3 Will CJ end up holding out on us? (Answer: We dont know, but if he does, we need someone to fill in with his kind of talent).

ANSWER: Draft this young kid and ask Chad to pony up and show the maturity of a veteran and mentor him. You get two things from this, #1 You get a great talent to coach up and Hue certainly has the ability to do it. #2 You get Chad showing more maturity and having a reason not to hold out too.

[Dadraftnick]

Everybody keeps missing the point.I dont care if Henry will be good SOMEDAY or not .I think he will.The point is in the draft in the first 4 rounds you need to draft guys that are starters.It makes more sense to take a starting S (which there were starting caliber safeties in the 3rd)when there is a BIG whole at that position,than is does to take a guy that will not even be activated most of the year, and even if he is how many plays is he going to be in on?If they had taken a S they would have had an every down player.As far as the best player avaliable theory goes,give me a break.You mean if you have Joe Montana,Steve Young,and John Elway and you have a chance to take Brett Farvre or Aaron Shoebel and your starting DE is Vaughn Booker that you would take Farvre ??And with Farvre you have a guy you will have to inactivate versus a guy that comes in starts,plays most of the plays,upgrades you at that position.You draft the best player available only when you have quality starters at every position and have no major needs.

[derekshank]

As far as the best player avaliable theory goes,give me a break.You mean if you have Joe Montana,Steve Young,and John Elway and you have a chance to take Brett Farvre or Aaron Shoebel and your starting DE is Vaughn Booker that you would take Farvre ??

That's a good point if we had Chad Johnson, Terrel Owens, and Randy Moss on our team.... and thank God we don't! Chad brings all the drama we need.

anyway... We had Housmandzadeh(a possession receiver), Warrick (injured) and Kelley Washington (underacheiving/unproven) as our receivers. For our team to win we NEED good play out of our receivers. We NEED all the help we can get to give Carson Palmer a chance.

I may agree that we also NEED help at SS, but Henry has the opportunity to be great, whereas most of the safeties available have the chance to be starters... but not great.

With Warrick obviously being in question, as well as Washington... I have no problem with them having a future mindset in the third round. We can't know how long Washington, or even Chad are going to be around. We're locking up highly talented receivers for our highly talented QB to throw to. Sounds logical to me. If Washington beats him out all season and he never gets to play... I think we can at least in part assume that his good play is thanks to him having his playing opportunity threatened by a talented rookie. (Let's also not assume that Henry won't play all season, just because he wasn't involved in the 1st game)

Not to mention that if we take a SS in the 3rd round with the intention of him starting, that means our first 3 draft picks are all defense rookies that will be playing every game. I don't know how I would feel about having nearly 30% of our defense having never played an NFL game.

[Chucktkd]

The pass rush has been addressed. Just give the new look awhile to develope.

WR's take longer to learn the position so it was a great move. PW is damaged goods, KW is no star and if either TJ or Chad gets hurt there's a shortage.