WAKE UP

[Spor_tees]

How is it fair weather to say it is a bit ridiculous to crown Marvin the savior of the city of Cincinnati when he has had all of one winning season in his 3 years as a coach. Shouldn't we wait til he does a little bit more before building a statue in front of the stadium in his honor? Man, with this logic, the people in Denver should be sacrificing their babies to Mike Shanahan for what he has done! That guy has had 6 non-losing seasons in a row, only one of which was a non-winning season going 8-8. So maybe I'll hold off a year or 2 on the Kool-aid til I see if Marvin can hold the ship together and not sink like the Titanic.

If expecting more than one winning season out of a coach before I reference him as a God is Fair weather, then I guess you should call Al Roker because there is a front moving through the Tri-State.

I never asked you to reference him as a God, however he deserves the credit of bringing 3 non losing seasons to the city, the last of which netted a Division Championship. Maybe you forgot what it was like to be a Bengal fan before Marvin, so the success we have had seems very little in your eyes. No one is asking for a statue either... I could care less about what Denver does and I personally think Shanahan is a f*cking idiot of a coach... Who cares ??

As for all the bad things that are going on right now, which I think are greatly blown out of proportion (except for the bandwagoners of course) Marvin is not the only person making decisions for the Bengal organization and is taking risks to make his team better. While I don't like how some of those risks have turned out, I'm not going to place total blame on Marvin either. He has his fair share, but he has done great things here and will continue doing great things...

Oh yeah, when that front blows through, go fly a kite !!!

WHODEY !!!

That makes a lot of sense! So you say Marvin is what turned around the team and brought 3 straight non-losing seasons to the Bengals, BUT at the same time said that the character risks aren't entirely his fault.

I would assume that "In Marvin we Trust" is referencing him as God. But then again I don't know where I would get that idea...the Dollar bill maybe, I dunno.

[ArmyBengal]

How is it fair weather to say it is a bit ridiculous to crown Marvin the savior of the city of Cincinnati when he has had all of one winning season in his 3 years as a coach. Shouldn't we wait til he does a little bit more before building a statue in front of the stadium in his honor? Man, with this logic, the people in Denver should be sacrificing their babies to Mike Shanahan for what he has done! That guy has had 6 non-losing seasons in a row, only one of which was a non-winning season going 8-8. So maybe I'll hold off a year or 2 on the Kool-aid til I see if Marvin can hold the ship together and not sink like the Titanic.

If expecting more than one winning season out of a coach before I reference him as a God is Fair weather, then I guess you should call Al Roker because there is a front moving through the Tri-State.

I never asked you to reference him as a God, however he deserves the credit of bringing 3 non losing seasons to the city, the last of which netted a Division Championship. Maybe you forgot what it was like to be a Bengal fan before Marvin, so the success we have had seems very little in your eyes. No one is asking for a statue either... I could care less about what Denver does and I personally think Shanahan is a f*cking idiot of a coach... Who cares ??

As for all the bad things that are going on right now, which I think are greatly blown out of proportion (except for the bandwagoners of course) Marvin is not the only person making decisions for the Bengal organization and is taking risks to make his team better. While I don't like how some of those risks have turned out, I'm not going to place total blame on Marvin either. He has his fair share, but he has done great things here and will continue doing great things...

Oh yeah, when that front blows through, go fly a kite !!!

WHODEY !!!

That makes a lot of sense! So you say Marvin is what turned around the team and brought 3 straight non-losing seasons to the Bengals, BUT at the same time said that the character risks aren't entirely his fault.

I would assume that "In Marvin we Trust" is referencing him as God. But then again I don't know where I would get that idea...the Dollar bill maybe, I dunno.

Dude, I never said Marvin is the sole reason for turning this team around... That credit belongs to the organization as a whole, but I will say that I give him most of the credit. On that same note, the risks aren't entirely his fault, but I will say that I give the head shed the most credit for those risks, as they have the ultimate decision to say yes or no. I don't get off on the whole "In Marvin we Trust" slogan, but I understand where it came from and no, I don't think it's a God reference unless you have some other idea of what God is... No, I don't want to know ANYONE's idea of what God is, so don't waste time please !!! I do get what you are saying though !!!

WHODEY !!!

[derekshank]

Ex-Buckeye and Viking RB Robert Smith was just on ESPNradio's "The Huddle Show" and was twice asked what his opinion was in regards to the Bengals most recent addition of yet another character risk. His response was pretty telling. He claimed that due to the demographic that NFL teams must select talent from that no team in the NFL can afford to be without multiple players who have obvious character flaws, and in some examples...a criminal past. He also added that casual fans would be shocked to learn that many of the most questionable character risks on any teams roster are players who have been lucky enough to avoid arrest or rumor. In addition, he said the Bengals not only hadn't done anything wrong, but hadn't done anything unusual. According to Smith each player acquisition has to be looked at individually, and if a player blows up then the team is smart to engage in damage control by casting that player off as quickly as possible, but he closed by claiming that no team interested in winning can afford to simply stop taking risks on players with checkered pasts.

Interesting. Since Smith is probably one of those guys with a checkered past who was lucky enough to avoid arrests and rumors throughout his career, I'm going to guess he knows what he's talking about.

[HairOnFire]

Ex-Buckeye and Viking RB Robert Smith was just on ESPNradio's "The Huddle Show" and was twice asked what his opinion was in regards to the Bengals most recent addition of yet another character risk. His response was pretty telling. He claimed that due to the demographic that NFL teams must select talent from that no team in the NFL can afford to be without multiple players who have obvious character flaws, and in some examples...a criminal past. He also added that casual fans would be shocked to learn that many of the most questionable character risks on any teams roster are players who have been lucky enough to avoid arrest or rumor. In addition, he said the Bengals not only hadn't done anything wrong, but hadn't done anything unusual. According to Smith each player acquisition has to be looked at individually, and if a player blows up then the team is smart to engage in damage control by casting that player off as quickly as possible, but he closed by claiming that no team interested in winning can afford to simply stop taking risks on players with checkered pasts.

Interesting. Since Smith is probably one of those guys with a checkered past who was lucky enough to avoid arrests and rumors throughout his career, I'm going to guess he knows what he's talking about.

Well, Robert Smith is as smart as any athlete likely to play football in the NFL. He once considered a career in medicine, and he's well spoken enough to have written a so-called expose about life in the NFL from behind closed doors. If I remember correctly it's called "The Rest of the Iceberg".

Again, the thing that struck me was how Smith simply shrugged off the question of if the Bengals were playing with fire. He actually laughed at Clayton and the female host for repeatedly trying to make a big deal of something he considered to be the norm. Clayton responded by having a hissy fit that would have sounded very familiar to anyone who frequents this message board.

BTW, Smith suprised me on one other point. When the subject of Ahmad Brooks knee injury was brought up Smith stated that advances in the treatment of knee injuries were so profound that it was almost unthinkable for any athlete to fail in his rehab if he followed his doctors instructions and worked hard. In short, any type of knee injury is fixable now if an athlete is young enough and a team is patient enough. When asked specifically about Brooks, Smith claimed that prior to the supplemental draft Brooks was checked out by wunderdocktor James Andrews and he passed all tests.

[Kirkendall]

I think some of you guys are missing something (if I just missed comments above, sorry).

What Henry, Rucker, Odell, and Nicholson have done, happened when they were either a Bengal, after drafted as a Bengal, or the coaches had no idea of this stuff if it happened in college. I'm speaking exactly on what they are in trouble for RIGHT NOW.

First of all, Henry and Odell failed their coach, their team, and the city. Marvin Lewis didn't force these guys to do what they are being accused of and EVERYONE here cheered these guys AFTER knowing they had character issues before this off-season. Was there a peep of concern then?

Why is Lewis getting s**t on more by fans than the players? They are of adult age, correct? Is Lewis breast feeding these guys? I agree, Lewis took a risk and that investment isn't really looking good PR wise. But the players are ultimately responsible for their own lives and decisions; not Lewis.

If these players were puppets on a string where Lewis was the puppet-master, then yea, I'd have a serious problem. Concerned? Well, I think it's pretty embarrassing. But Lewis tried to give these "troubled" kids a chance and THEY failed HIM. Lewis didn't fail Cincinnati or you.

Then again, I've always believed people are responsible for their own actions.

AND YES, Marvin Lewis turned this around.

[Bobcat Bengal]

I saw where someone in another thread tried to put a good spin on the loss of Odell for 4 games - "hey, we just found a way to get Landon on the field!" What an absolutely and pathetically stupid thing to say. Any reasonable fan wants Landon there as a TOP quality **backup**,

Uhm, I'm a reasonable fan, and Landon is the "Silent Assassin" . I also believe that he is more than capable of performing in a starting capacity. He deserves to play. Just cuz he's a 'choir boy' doesn't mean he doesn't have talent.

[HairOnFire]

...Lewis took a risk and that investment isn't really looking good PR wise. But the players are ultimately responsible for their own lives and decisions; not Lewis.

If these players were puppets on a string where Lewis was the puppet-master, then yea, I'd have a serious problem. Concerned? Well, I think it's pretty embarrassing. But Lewis tried to give these "troubled" kids a chance and THEY failed HIM. Lewis didn't fail Cincinnati or you.

Then again, I've always believed people are responsible for their own actions.

The article in this mornings Enquirer touched on the above, and immediately reminded me of a Bengal players opinion of why Dick LeBeau failed so miserably in his final season as head coach. LeBeau's failing was said to have resulted from his decision to treat players like men, and the resulting lack of parental styled supervision led to poor discipline and a 3-13 meltdown. And it probaly didn't help matters when LeBeau addressed the team dressed up like Elvis and Superman.

Frankly, there's no point to be argued here. For example, we all know that Chris Henry is responsible for his own actions, and if he's made Marvin look foolish for selecting him then it's just as true that Lewis had weighed that possibility and determined that his reputation could easily absorb the hit and the draft costs without any lasting harm. Whether that remains true after repeated hits involving multiple players has yet to be determined, but I admit that right now it looks pretty bad. Then again, there are no games being played right now and that simple fact by itself means the character debate is entirely limited to ravings in the media that have become incredibly one-sided and hissy-fitted.

Again, I believe this issue to be overblown and overheated almost entirely due to the actions of one player, Chris Henry. His meltdown brought the attention in the first place, and his repeated trangressions made certain that the intense glare of the media never strayed. That said, I believe strongly that without Henry's spectacular meltdown the news of Thurman's 4-game suspension would have been treated with a collective shrug by the national media, as would the story of AJ Nicholson's daring theft of his own property.

The beast must be fed, and the pot must be stirred. Drama sells newspapers, fills airwaves, and gives people a reason to wax poetically from soapboxes that normally sit idle. And any FANatic will tell you that panic must be embraced whenever possible.

In fact, I hear it's good for your soul and opens up your pores.

[TJJackson]

Uhm, I'm a reasonable fan, and Landon is the "Silent Assassin" . I also believe that he is more than capable of performing in a starting capacity. He deserves to play. Just cuz he's a 'choir boy' doesn't mean he doesn't have talent.

Do you also believe that if there are 3 better linebackers available to play, that he should play in place of one of them?

Because that was my point....

I believe strongly that without Henry's spectacular meltdown the news of Thurman's 4-game suspension would have been treated with a collective shrug by the national media

Probably by the national media, but not we the fans....we need Thurman in there for those 4 games - for all 16 games. Aside from that, Thurman's bad behaivior in combination with Nicholson's caused us to waste a 3rd next year .......and unfortunately on yet another ne'er-do-well.