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Ludwig: Clemons Won't Be Back


HoosierCat

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little blurb from chick's recent TSN column...

Another player not expected back is DE Duane Clemons. He refused to buy into the club's offseason program, and never made an impact after returning from a four-game suspension for violating the NFL Substance Abuse Policy.

No big surprise...but does increase the need to find a viable pass-rushing threat in FA or the draft...

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little blurb from chick's recent TSN column...
Another player not expected back is DE Duane Clemons. He refused to buy into the club's offseason program, and never made an impact after returning from a four-game suspension for violating the NFL Substance Abuse Policy.

No big surprise...but does increase the need to find a viable pass-rushing threat in FA or the draft...

I know its early and all, but I am eager to find out who wants to come here, as I am sure everyone else is. Maybe with Duane Clemons gone, Mike Brown can show FA Dwight Freeney where the money is, and beg him to come here. I know Irsay will do everything in his power to keep Freeney, but hopefully Freeney can see that he has a better chance of earning a ring here with Carson, rather than losing year in and year out in the postseason with Peyton.

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little blurb from chick's recent TSN column...

Another player not expected back is DE Duane Clemons. He refused to buy into the club's offseason program, and never made an impact after returning from a four-game suspension for violating the NFL Substance Abuse Policy.

No big surprise...but does increase the need to find a viable pass-rushing threat in FA or the draft...

I know its early and all, but I am eager to find out who wants to come here, as I am sure everyone else is. Maybe with Duane Clemons gone, Mike Brown can show FA Dwight Freeney where the money is, and beg him to come here. I know Irsay will do everything in his power to keep Freeney, but hopefully Freeney can see that he has a better chance of earning a ring here with Carson, rather than losing year in and year out in the postseason with Peyton.

Dwight Freeney is signed through 2008...

http://www.nflpa.org/Members/playerProfile.asp?ID=32987

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little blurb from chick's recent TSN column...

Another player not expected back is DE Duane Clemons. He refused to buy into the club's offseason program, and never made an impact after returning from a four-game suspension for violating the NFL Substance Abuse Policy.

No big surprise...but does increase the need to find a viable pass-rushing threat in FA or the draft...

I know its early and all, but I am eager to find out who wants to come here, as I am sure everyone else is. Maybe with Duane Clemons gone, Mike Brown can show FA Dwight Freeney where the money is, and beg him to come here. I know Irsay will do everything in his power to keep Freeney, but hopefully Freeney can see that he has a better chance of earning a ring here with Carson, rather than losing year in and year out in the postseason with Peyton.

http://www.nflpa.org/Members/playerProfile.asp?ID=32987

Damn you're right!! Wishful thinking I guess.

Dwight Freeney is signed through 2008

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Freeney's got a $5 million escalator in 2006 but the Colts will either pay him or try to restructure to pay him even more yet shave some cap.

As for Big Duane, thank him for his services and move on...him and Carl Plowed.

The Bengals need a sack threat at DE in the wost way and there's UFAs out there who fit. Bring them in and see who wants to play in stripes.

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These are all the FA at S and D-Line this offseason. This of course doesn't include many of the players that will be cut due to cap problems (of which there should be many). But by the looks of it... while there aren't a ton of big names there... we can certainly replace Clemons.

http://www.profootballtalk.com/2006freeagents.htm

New England: S Michael Stone

Miami: S Lance Schulters; S Yeremiah Bell (RFA)

Buffalo: DE Ryan Denney; DT Justin Bannan; DT Ron Edwards

New York Jets: DT James Reed; DE John Abraham

Pittsburgh: DE Kimo von Oelhoffen; S Chris Hope

Cleveland: DE Orpheus Roye; DT Ethan Kelley (RFA); S Antwan Harris

Baltimore: DE Anthony Weaver; DT Ma'ake Kemoeatu; S Chad Williams; S Will Demps; DE Jarret Johnson (RFA); DT Aubrayo Franklin (RFA)

Indianapolis: DE Raheem Brock; DT Larry Tripplett; DE Robert Mathis (RFA); S Joseph Jefferson; S Gerome Sapp (RFA)

Jacksonville: S Deke Cooper; DE Marcellus Wiley; DT Rob Meier

Houston: S Ramon Walker

Tennessee: DE Kyle Vanden Bosch; S Tank Williams; S Donnie Nickey (RFA)

Denver: DT Monsanto Pope; DT Demtrin Veal (RFA); S Sam Brandon; DE Marco Coleman

Oakland: S Jarrod Cooper; DT Terdell Sands; DT Edward Jasper; S Reggie Tongue; DT Kenny Smith

Kansas City: DT Lional Dalton; DE Jimmy Wilkerson (RFA); DE Carlos Hall

San Diego: DE DeQuincy Scott; DE Jacques Cesaire (RFA); S Clinton Hart (RFA)

Dallas: S Keith Davis (RFA); S Willie Pile (RFA); S Lynn Scott; DT Willie Blade

Philadelphia: DE N.D. Kalu; DE Juqua Thomas; S Quintin Mikell (RFA)

Washington: S Ryan Clark; DT Cedric Killings (RFA); DE Demetric Evans; S Omar Stoutmire

New York Giants: DT Kendrick Clancy; DT Kenderick Allen (RFA)

Minnesota: S Corey Chavous; DE Lance Johnstone; S Willie Offord

Detroit: DE Cory Redding (RFA); S Terrence Holt (RFA); DE Jared DeVries; DE Kalimba Edwards; S Bracy Walker; S Vernon Fox

Green Bay: DE Aaron Kampman; DT Grady Jackson; DE Kenny Peterson (RFA); S Earl Little

Carolina: S Marlon McCree; DT Kindal Moorehead (RFA); DE Kemp Rasmussen; S Idrees Bashir; S Colin Branch (RFA)

New Orleans: DE Willie Whitehead; DE Darren Howard; S Mel Mitchell

Tampa Bay: DT Chris Hovan; S Dexter Jackson

Atlanta: S Keion Carpenter; DE Antwan Lake; S Ronnie Heard; S Kevin McCadam; S Antuan Edwards; S Omare Lowe

Arizona: DE Ross Kolodziej; DE Antonio Cochran; DE R-Kal Truluck; S Quentin Harris; DT Russell Davis; DE Kenny King (RFA); DT Langston Moore (RFA)

St. Louis: DT Ryan Pickett; S Adam Archuleta; S Mike Furrey (RFA); DE Tyoka Jackson; DT Damione Lewis; DE Brandon Green (RFA)

Seattle: S Marquand Manuel; DE Rodney Bailey; DT Rocky Bernard; DE Joe Tafoya; S John Howell; San Francisco: DE Travis Hall

why cant we send pollack to de and smith stays put and then get a olb in freeagency

We could... but Pollack was coming on toward the end of the season at LB... and he could be one of the best QB blitzing LB's in all of football. You don't sacrifice that potential because of a new draft.

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Well, if they go the Free Agent Route, here's who they can choose from...

Aaron Kampman UFA Packers

Anthony Weaver UFA Ravens

Antonio Cochran UFA Cardinals

Antwan Lake UFA Falcons

Brandon Green RFA Rams

Carl Powell UFA Bengals

Carlos Hall UFA Chiefs

Cory Redding RFA Lions

Darren Howard UFA Saints

Demetric Evans UFA Redskins

DeQuincy Scott UFA Chargers

Jacques Cesaire RFA Chargers

Jared DeVries UFA Lions

Jarret Johnson RFA Ravens

Jimmy Wilkerson RFA Chiefs

Joe Tafoya UFA Seahawks

John Abraham UFA Jets

Juqua Thomas UFA Eagles

Kalimba Edwards UFA Lions

Kemp Rasmussen UFA Panthers

Kenny King RFA Cardinals

Kenny Peterson RFA Packers

Kimo von Oelhoffen UFA Steelers

Kyle Vanden Bosch UFA Titans

Lance Johnstone UFA Vikings

Marcellus Wiley UFA Jaguars

Marco Coleman UFA Broncos

N.D. Kalu UFA Eagles

Orpheus Roye UFA Browns

Raheem Brock UFA Colts

R-Kal Truluck UFA Cardinals

Robert Mathis RFA Colts

Rodney Bailey UFA Seahawks

Ross Kolodziej UFA Cardinals

Ryan Denney UFA Bills

Travis Hall UFA 49ers

Tyoka Jackson UFA Rams

Willie Whitehead UFA Saints

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little blurb from chick's recent TSN column...
Another player not expected back is DE Duane Clemons. He refused to buy into the club's offseason program, and never made an impact after returning from a four-game suspension for violating the NFL Substance Abuse Policy.

No big surprise...but does increase the need to find a viable pass-rushing threat in FA or the draft...

Dave Lapham mentioned that a week back. He said that Clemons had pondered retirement during the season.

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ROTF!!

The last DL mentioned in the above linked article is Kimo. His entry reads as follows:

"Kimo Von Oelhoffen, DT, Pittsburgh: The perfect cog in a top notch defense, von Oelhoffen is the type of player who acts as the glue between players. He may not get the stats, but without him, no one else would. At age 34, he is likely to resign with Pitt and finish out his career tutoring a midround pick. One place he won't be next season is Cincinnati."

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I really think our DL will be improved via the draft and not free agency. Sorry, the chances of trying to get any of those top DL FAs is minimal.

Unfortunately, I think I have to agree with you on this one. This is a deep DT draft, so we should be able to get an upgrade there without using a 1st round pick... and this leaves a variety of Safeties available in the 1st round for us to take.

The piece this leaves out is a pass rushing DE, which is mostly what this thread is about, and with Smith, Geathers, and Fanene I very much doubt we'll see a DE on the first day of this draft. Smith is good against the run (which forces him to not use his spin moves, so he doesn't get a good pass rush) and Geathers was a disappointment as far as getting a pass rush too.

I think our biggest weakness on defense is the pass rush. Having Madieu back, and getting a SS will make us one of the best secondaries... and we have been fine against the run. But we give the QB all day to find an open receiver, so we need a pass rushing DE, and if we don't do it thorugh free agency (and I think we won't) it will continue to be a problem next season.

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what you all are overlooking is allot of very good players are going to be cut due to cap reasons.... free agent list is okay but the guys that will be cut may be even better......

Actually this was not overlooked...

These are all the FA at S and D-Line this offseason. This of course doesn't include many of the players that will be cut due to cap problems (of which there should be many).

...not to pat myself on the back or anything though

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I really think our DL will be improved via the draft and not free agency. Sorry, the chances of trying to get any of those top DL FAs is minimal.

Unfortunately, I think I have to agree with you on this one. This is a deep DT draft, so we should be able to get an upgrade there without using a 1st round pick... and this leaves a variety of Safeties available in the 1st round for us to take.

Depends on who you call a "top" FA. John Abraham? No way. He'll be tagged, we aren't coughing up the picks, and if somehow he should be an untagged UFA come March 1, our chances of landing him will be (attn. Fire, HairOn) 0%. :P

But a guy like Howard...a bit older, mixed performance, some injury issues, some locker room issues...that I can see. And someoone like that would be worth rolling the dice on, IMHO.

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I really think our DL will be improved via the draft and not free agency. Sorry, the chances of trying to get any of those top DL FAs is minimal.

Unfortunately, I think I have to agree with you on this one. This is a deep DT draft, so we should be able to get an upgrade there without using a 1st round pick... and this leaves a variety of Safeties available in the 1st round for us to take.

Depends on who you call a "top" FA. John Abraham? No way. He'll be tagged, we aren't coughing up the picks, and if somehow he should be an untagged UFA come March 1, our chances of landing him will be (attn. Fire, HairOn) 0%. :P

But a guy like Howard...a bit older, mixed performance, some injury issues, some locker room issues...that I can see. And someoone like that would be worth rolling the dice on, IMHO.

Yeah... okay. I'm okay with getting a Howard, or even a Tripplet. Getting a DT in free agency gives us a lot more flexibility on draft day... and that's always a good thing. I guess I jsut don't see us going really hard after the more coveted players. We have been building through the draft... and most likely that is how we will continue.

I think extending the O-Line is going to eat up enough cap-space that they won't want to bring in a high-priced guy. On the one hand, I'm okay with that, because I don't want to get in cap trouble. I want us to be good for a long time... not for a short while, and then have to cut everyone (ala the Titans). On the other hand, if we don't get a higher end FA we're still going to have a hole or two, either at DT, DE, or SS. You can definetly still win the superbowl with a hole or two... but it does make it harder, and who wants to wait until '07? ... I guess I haven't totally kicked the instant gratification our culture imposes on us all.

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I really think our DL will be improved via the draft and not free agency. Sorry, the chances of trying to get any of those top DL FAs is minimal.

Unfortunately, I think I have to agree with you on this one. This is a deep DT draft, so we should be able to get an upgrade there without using a 1st round pick... and this leaves a variety of Safeties available in the 1st round for us to take.

Depends on who you call a "top" FA. John Abraham? No way. He'll be tagged, we aren't coughing up the picks, and if somehow he should be an untagged UFA come March 1, our chances of landing him will be (attn. Fire, HairOn) 0%. :P

But a guy like Howard...a bit older, mixed performance, some injury issues, some locker room issues...that I can see. And someoone like that would be worth rolling the dice on, IMHO.

I agree with this assessment. Guys like Damione Lewis and Ryan Pickett for instance are more viable. Howard from NO would be an interesting pick-up. He was in the doghouse this year, but he has had good production in years past.

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I'm okay with getting a Howard, or even a Tripplet. Getting a DT in free agency gives us a lot more flexibility on draft day... and that's always a good thing. I guess I jsut don't see us going really hard after the more coveted players.

Neither do I. They don't like doing the kind of deal necessary (not so much in terms of total $$$ but structure) to get them.

I think extending the O-Line is going to eat up enough cap-space that they won't want to bring in a high-priced guy. On the one hand, I'm okay with that, because I don't want to get in cap trouble. I want us to be good for a long time... not for a short while, and then have to cut everyone (ala the Titans).

Yeah, I also expect them to use their space mainly to resign guys, and I've said elsewhere that I don't expect much out of FA beyond a vet QB backup (Kit or someone else) and a couple-three second/third tier types (like Robinson, Ohalete, etc. last season).

I dont want to see them in cap trouble either...but there is a wide waste of space between where the Bengals are now and where the Titans are. To your "instant gratification" comment, what upsets me about the Bengals in FA isn't that they don't spend like, say, Dan Snyder's Redskins, but that they categorically refuse to make the occasional splash.

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I think Tripplet would be an excellent pickup. I'd imagine he'd have no qualms with being a Bengal, and he wouldn't be all that pricy after being a 2005 backup. Howard could be a good pickup as well, but I'm always a little iffy about picking up an older player. His history with locker room trouble doesn't bother me considering Clemons' having the same reputation.

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why cant we send pollack to de and smith stays put and then get a olb in freeagency

Because the Bengals' need a big, 4-3, 3 down DE who's a true pass rushing threat, who can handle offensive tackles.

Pollack has great pass rushing skills for a guy his size - he will be asked to rush the QB more than the OLB's currently do in this defense as a result. But the LB's here need protection from the d-line, not another tweener or smallish DE who can't get off of blocks - hell their DT's and LB's can't get off blocks as it is.

Pollack has great instincts and enough over-all ability to not waste it on a pass rushing role player position. He would not work as a 3-down DE in this scheme I don't think. He needs to work in space and use his speed and quickness.

Justin Smith is a waste - the 4-3 should've been of great benefit to him - but he's only improved marginally since it was implemented.

It's time to cut ties with him either this off season or after his contract is up.

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