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Chick Ludwig covers the Cincinnati Bengals. He also writes about his other passions: college football, basketball and golf.Home > Blogs > Chick Ludwig At Large > Archives > 2008 > October > 30 > Entry
How the ‘0-fer’ 2008 Bengals were built
CLEARLY, THERE’S NOT ENOUGH
TALENT ON THE 2008 ROSTER
A GREAT QUARTERBACK’S CAREER
IS WASTING AWAY IN THE ‘NATI
I’m tired of listening to all the crap on sports talk radio about the Cincinnati Bengals having all this talent.
“There’s too much talent on this team not to win,” I keep hearing.
That’s baloney. FOLKS, THERE’S NOT ENOUGH TALENT. I SEE IT EVERY WEEK.
Driving to Cincinnati on Oct. 19 for the Bengals’ game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, I was tuned into WLW-AM for Ken Broo’s interview with Peter King of Sports Illustrated and NBC.
Broo asked King what the Bengals need to do to get turned around.
King said the Bengals won’t become a consistent winner until team owner and president Mike Brown hires a general manager “to take over full control of the personnel on this team.”
Truer words were never spoken.
The limited scouting staff — Duke Tobin, Jim Lippincott and Greg Seaman — are hard workers who do an excellent job roaming the country and filing scouting reports on college players.
Then the Bengals coaches go out after the season and they fall in love with “workout warriors.”
This club needs to blow up the offensive line and start from scratch. The defensive line needs help, Help, HELP!
The Bengals have good skill position players and decent cornerbacks. But they STINK in the trenches on both sides of the ball.
You build a team from the inside out … not the outside in.
I just wonder when Carson Palmer’s gonna say: “GET ME OUT OF HERE!!!”
Because the light at the end of the tunnel is a train ready to run over the franchise.
P.S. Don’t EVEN get me started on the coaching staff. That blog entry is for another time and another day. Let’s just say some dudes, cats & studs need to move on to their life’s work in ‘09.
BENGALS STARTING LINEUP
OFFENSE
WR: Chad Ocho Cinco — Drafted 2nd round, 2001 (No. 36 overall), Oregon State.
LT: Levi Jones — Drafted 1st round, 2002 (No. 10 overall), Arizona State.
LG: Andrew Whitworth — Drafted 2nd round, 2006 (No. 55 overall), LSU.
C: Eric Ghiaciuc — Drafted 4th round, 2005 (No. 119 overall), Central Michigan.
RG: Bobbie Williams — Drafted by PHILADELPHIA, 2nd round, 2000 (No. 61 overall), Arkansas; Joined Bengals as UFA in 2004.
RT: Stacy Andrews — Drafted 4th round, 2004 (No. 123 overall), Mississippi.
TE: Reggie Kelly — Drafted by ATLANTA, 2nd round, 1999 (No. 42 overall), Mississippi State; Joined Bengals as UFA in 2003.
WR: T.J. Houshmandzadeh — Drafted 7th round, 2001 (No. 204 overall), Oregon State.
QB: Carson Palmer — Drafted 1st round, 2003 (No. 1 overall), Southern California.
TB: Cedric Benson — Drafted by CHICAGO, 1st round, 2005 (No. 4 overall), Texas; Joined Bengals as free agent in 2008.
FB: Daniel Coats — Signed as non-drafted college free agent, 2007, Brigham Young
DEFENSE
LE: Robert Geathers — Drafted 4th round, 2004 (No. 117 overall), Georgia
LDT: Domata Peko — Drafted 4th round, 2006 (No. 123 overall), Michigan State
RDT: John Thornton — Drafted by TENNESSEE, 2nd round, 1999 (No. 52 overall), West Virginia; Joined Bengals as UFA in 2003.
RE: Antwan Odom — Drafted by TENNESSEE, 2nd round, 2004 (No. 57 overall), Alabama; Joined Bengals as UFA in 2008.
SLB: Rashad Jeanty — Signed as free agent, 2006, after spending 3 seasons in Canadian Football League; Central Florida.
MLB: Dhani Jones —Drafted by N.Y. GIANTS, 6th round, 2000 (No. 177 overall), Michigan; Joined Bengals as UFA in 2007.
WLB: Brandon Johnson — Drafted by ARIZONA, 5th round, 2006 (No. 142 overall); Louisville; Joined Bengals as free agent in 2008; NOTE: Johnson takes over for injured rookie Keith Rivers, the Bengals’ first-round draft pick (No. 9 overall) in 2008.
LCB: Johnathan Joseph — Drafted 1st round, 2006 (No. 24 overall), South Carolina.
RCB: Leon Hall — Drafted 1st round, 2007 (No.18 overall), Michigan.
SS: Chinedum Ndukwe — Drafted 7th round, 2007 (No. 253 overall), Notre Dame.
FS: Dexter Jackson — Drafted by TAMPA BAY, 4th round, 1999 (No. 113 overall), Florida State; Joined Bengals as UFA in 2006.
SPECIALISTS
K: Shayne Graham — Acquired off waivers from Carolina in 2003; Virginia Tech
P: Kyle Larson —Signed as non-drafted college free agent, 2004, Nebraska
KR: Glenn Holt — Signed as non-drafted college free agent, 2006, Kentucky
PR: Antonio Chatman — Signed as free agent, 2006, after 3 years with Green Bay; University of Cincinnati.
LS: Brad St. Louis — Drafted 7th round, 2000 (No. 210 overall), Southwest Missouri State.
WHY, OH, WHY DO THE CINCINNATI BENGALS BUILD UP THEIR FANS JUST TO LET ‘EM DOWN?
Permalink | Comments (15) | Post your comment | Categories: Bengals
Comments
By Steve Tovar
October 30, 2008 11:46 AM | Link to this
I agree, the Bengals are short on talent on both sides of the ball. If they drafted better/smarter then they wouldn’t have had to use the franchise tag on marginal players like Smith and Andrews the last two years. Lack of depth at DE and OT forced their hand in both cases. Until Fuhrer Mike Brown hires a GM nothing will change.By Steven Ross
October 30, 2008 11:54 AM | Link to this
Bengals are lacking in talent from top to bottom. The entire organ-eye-za-shun is flawed. Good luck turning this Lusitania around. Unless Mike Brown capitulates and hires a NON-FAMILY MEMBER to call the shots, nothing changes. Now let us all pray.By Hudepohl Dey
October 30, 2008 12:37 PM | Link to this
Mike Brown is obsessed with flashy CBs and WRs…like you said Chickster, “you build a team from the inside-out, not the outside-in” Almost every game this year, the Bengals have looked like shrimps compared to their opponents. (Ward knocked out Rivers, you’ll never see a Bengal receiver knock out a Steeler LB…EVER) Year-in and year-out they compile an undersized roster, yet seem confused how they continually suffer from the injury plague. Hmm… Mikey Boy, are ya tryin to lose you’re entire fan base???? psst… it’s workingBy Yippee
October 30, 2008 1:08 PM | Link to this
I agree with Chick. The Bengals are not talented. Compare this team with the ‘05 team, the personnel since then has been severely mis-managed.By Guru
October 30, 2008 2:42 PM | Link to this
Lets see Mike Brown,Katie & Tom Blackburn Paul H. Brown can’t get the paperwork right and into the league to make a trade for Shaun Rogers A monsterous DT they have desparately needed for years, they were more concerned about Dwayne Robertsons Salary than anything else,They Drafted Chris Perry over Stephen Jackson, John Copeland over Willie Roaf, Until the local and national media start brining the ownerships incompetance to public light in high pressure nothing will change The ENquirer’s Mark Curnutte is just a parrot for the organization just like Hobson was and is now for the team website Chick is the only Beat writer calling the incompetance out although Chickster you bought the hype earlier this year thinking this slop would win 10 national media needs to expose this sham Heck Mike Brown thinks “they have done a good Job” give the truth full dsiclosure here!By Brian
October 30, 2008 3:03 PM | Link to this
Meanwhile at Bengals HQ, Mike Brown hears whispers in the hallways about fans clamoring for a general manager. He then thinks back to his childhood when his mother demanded he eat his brussels sprouts. Refusing to consume the vegetable, Mike instead stubbornly held his breath until he passed out. He would go on to NEVER eat a single brussels sprout. Setting that memory aside, Mike dwells a bit on the demands for a general manager before taking a deep breath and holding it as stubbornly as before. “General manager,” he thought as stars danced around his eyes. “You can’t make me! You can’t make me! Nanna nanna boo boo….” A Bengals staffer later found Mike contently passed out on his office floor.By Sprung a Leak
October 30, 2008 3:42 PM | Link to this
Hope springs eternal for us mentally-warped Bengals fans… eight years ago this month, the 0-6 Bengals won a home game against a 4-3 opponent (the Broncos) with a stat line that went like this: Bengals’ passing: 2 of 14 for 34 yards and no TDs (and no INTs). The QBs involved were none other than Hall-of-Fame candidates Akili Smith and Scott Mitchell. Of course their effort was bolstered a bit by 407 yards rushing and 3 TD plays over 40 yards. Stranger things have happened… maybe Fitz and Cedric and… awwww, forget it!By John
October 30, 2008 9:10 PM | Link to this
WHY, OH, WHY DO THE CINCINNATI BENGALS BUILD UP THEIR FANS JUST TO LET ‘EM DOWN? It’s not the Bengals, who build up their fans, it’s the sports writers who the Bengals fan trust, until proven different. Only ML speaks from Bengal management, the rest is from the “experts”; commentators, radio, tv, and the written word. (Chickster etc). We can’t blame the hype on Bengal mgt,(MB doesn’t speak) but on the experts who cheerlead the Bengals, until the team falls apart, and we no longer can be fooled by these “experts”.By John
October 30, 2008 9:23 PM | Link to this
Let CP go to the NFC east division where he can be a Cowboy, or play against the Cowboys twice a year. Where his talent will not be wasted. Pro careers don’t last very long anyway!By blindeye
October 30, 2008 9:34 PM | Link to this
Great post. The whole thing is a big eye opener as far as I’m concerned. Especially seeing all of the free agent signings and the 4th and lower round draft picks. Again as before I think most of this was done by Mike Brown to save oney reasons. Sure they lost high draft picks because of injury and conduct but they have also failed in the players that the draft. An example would be how the handled Justin Smith and the personnel that they placed around him.By John
October 30, 2008 10:12 PM | Link to this
We Cincinnati Bengals fans should be content with just having an NFL team in Cincinnati. Since the departure of PB, the goal of management is only to fill the stadium seats on game day. If we want to see a contending team, well, the gasoline prices are coming down so we can better afford to tavel to Pittsburgh or Indianapolis more often now, than we could have in the recent past.By psychostats
October 30, 2008 10:38 PM | Link to this
Heading into the 1978 season, most observers thought the Bengals had gobs of talent. After they started out 0-8, the same people insisted there was absolutely none on the roster. Well, the team must have been doing something right, because they were coming off three straight winning seasons. Truth be told, there was plenty of talent to work with, and that is why Forrest Gregg could eventually come in and take the team to the Super Bowl in his second year. The guy was a good coach, but he wasn’t a miracle worker. So here we are 30 years later and the 2008 team is said to be completely devoid of talent. Again, that view is off the mark. This year’s 0-8 debacle is due to all the accumulated incompetencies of the front office, just like in 1978. Except now there are no Forrest Greggs to turn to. (His style wouldn’t fly in today’s NFL.) As fans, we’re totally screwed, but not because the players lack ability. It’s because of EVERYTHING. It all blends together to form a heaping, reeking pile of Brown Family excrement, and no single cause stands above the rest.By John
October 31, 2008 1:28 AM | Link to this
PB’s background was different than MB. MB grew up as the coaches son. PB was the coach, and founder of this team. His experience was “hands on”; coaching and judging players from a coaches frame of reference. MB only watched his dad as best he could.By Brian
October 31, 2008 10:24 AM | Link to this
I’d love to see Mike Brown step up to the plate, putting his vast football knowledge on the line, and be the next head coach of the Bengals. Like father, like son. Only in reverse. Too bad his cowardice gets in the way…By JimB
November 1, 2008 12:23 PM | Link to this
Chick, as usual you’re not too far off the mark. The D-line is a work in progress and seems to be improving. The O-line however is BAD! I can not believe there is $25 mil. of sal-cap space being eaten up there. I don’t know about blow it up, but for sure Levi Jones doesn’t seem able to overcome his injuries, Ghuricic (or however you spell his name), is a back up at best, Andrews as a franchise player is a bust (At $4 mil. per he might be a servicable RT) so that leaves 60% of the line to be revamped. Since we’re on the clock do you see a big O-lineman from Alabama as the Bengals top pick? As for Ocho Stinco, don’t you wish we’d gotten some draft picks for him when we had the chance?! Moreover, what has Chris Henry done for us, even back on the roster? Mike Brown, I’m available for the GM position, I’ll work for love of the team, hire me…it would have to be an improvement, if for no other reason than the fact I actually give a damn! Do you, Mike?