Inigo Montoya

Mims might not go as high as I originally thought. He’s a physical freak and his speed/agility at that size seems almost impossible. He’s also pretty raw with limited experience and he missed time with injuries, including a high ankle sprain that required surgery last year. There’s risk historically drafting a player with this kind of profile.

Exactly right. I guess repeating speculation enough times makes it true. Like George Constanza said, it’s not a lie if YOU believe it.

Reading today Stealers signed Patterson specifically to boost returns for new kickoff rules. Could be a sneaky good move.

You can thank the transfer portal for that. Anyone can play just about anywhere now and promising talent from the smaller conferences can be easily poached by the big names. You also see guys switching between top programs, which was much more rare previously.

The division is a concern. Lamar owns us (8-2 in his career). Pittsburgh continues to own us. Burrow hasn’t done well against Cleveland. They have to find a way to win more division games no doubt about it. I think improving the defense is the key, not only to the division but also overall. That side of the ball fell off a cliff last year.

I agree with this. Fields is a textbook example of how not to develop a QB. The organization failed him from the beginning by giving him no weapons and a coaching change between years 1-2. I don’t want him to succeed in Pittsburgh or anywhere in the AFC, but otherwise I hope he gets a chance.

Where we’re at is no different than the past 3 years. We still have a legitimate chance to win it all, but the division is the toughest in the league and the AFC is loaded. That’s reality, not an excuse. It may or may not end up how we want but there’s no games till September. The roster isn’t even close to being finished and it’s very reasonable to like what has happened to this point. Especially when guys like Mixon and Jonah are no longer here as many people wanted.

Why bother. Nuance would mean actually acknowledging the occasional thing the team does that you like. I know better than to think that will ever happen with you.

The games aren’t going to be played for months. Are you going to do nothing but be negative until then? They’ve done what you wanted. Jonah is gone and a veteran has been signed to replace him. We still have the draft to add more pieces. You should be happy but nope. I doubt anything, even winning a Super Bowl, would change it for you.

Yeah I’m not sure the league sees it that way. Browning played less than half a season and was above average overall. He was good in a few games (JAX, IND, MIN) and not so good in a few others (both PIT games, KC). Bengals fans didn’t expect much and he was a pleasant surprise. If anything, guys like Fields and Pickett are seen as more talented and that inflated their trade values, which ended up being late Day 3 picks.

That’s all hypothetical. What we do know is that all of the recent QB trades have been for very little return. I’m sure there will be more moves during or after the draft. Very unlikely Browning is moved or would get much in a trade. The market just isn’t there.

True they’re all former first rounders. The point is that there’s no market for QB trades right now. You’d be getting very little in return if there’s any interest at all. Browning has more value to us since he knows our offense and would be cheap to keep around for the next couple years.

No the market says otherwise. Fields, Pickett, and Mac Jones were all traded for peanuts. Nobody else is going to trade anything but a late round flyer, possibly in next year’s draft, for Browning.

Trent Brown would be an ideal signing. He has experience at both OT positions with 93 combined starts. New England has actually traded for him twice, first from SF then from the Raiders.

I doubt Browning would fetch much in a trade. Just look at how little Fields, Pickett, or Mac Jones were traded for. I’m on board with your idea but the market just doesn’t seem to be there, IMO.

Curtis Martin and Bettis are two more that broke the mold. The injury factor is a big one for longevity. I also agree about college numbers. Bottom line, there’s a reason teams have changed their approach to the RB position. Analytics can be a helpful tool but there are exceptions.

Yeah it’s not just age but wear and tear. Mixon has 7 seasons with 1,854 combined carries/receptions while Moss has 5 seasons with 559. Not even close in terms of mileage.

Reading back through this thread, it seems that no one is very happy about the moves the Bengals made at RB. Plenty of people were done with Mixon and wanted him gone for a while now. Yet I’m not seeing much celebration that they got their wish. I’m assuming that’s mainly because they don’t know or like Moss (already) and/or wanted a bigger name in free agency. The same goes for the smaller group who supported Joe and we’re OK with keeping him. They’re not pleased at the change and see it as a downgrade. My take is the Bengals wanted to get younger and cheaper at the position. Moss is both of those things compared to Mixon. He flashed early last year for Indy in place of Jonathan Taylor after being traded from Buffalo. That’s not much to go on, but it’s something.

Love Reader. No doubt he was an impact player and a huge part of our success in ‘21 and ‘22. Few players in the league can dominate like he can at his position. That said, injuries were an issue in 3 of his 4 seasons in Cincinnati. He only played 5 games his first year, missed 7 games in ‘22, and suffered another major quad injury late last year. I would have wanted him back anyway but I understand the reticence to commit to a player at his age and injury history. It’s not certain whether he’ll be ready for the start of next year and his best years are likely behind him. I hope he does well in Detroit and there’s no doubt he leaves behind a major hole to fill.

I tend to agree. Hard to predict exactly what will happen obviously, but reports/rumors seem to indicate there will be action in free agency. I’m hearing a safety will be brought in for sure and also they’ll try to sign Reader or another DT to replace him. OT and TE are clear needs on offense so there will be moves there as well. I also wouldn’t rule out CB.

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/ravens-announce-four-year-extension-for-justin-madubuike

KC won with defense last year. It was by far the best defense they’ve had since the arrival of Mahomes or Reid. If the Bengals are truly going to copy that blueprint, a heavy investment in their bottom third ranked unit will be needed. I don’t see how they can get back to the Super Bowl without significantly better defensive performance.

Based on Simmons’ comments, there’s going to be a competition at punter, possibly from a veteran. Nobody is happy with what we saw last year and it appears that Robbins has to perform or he’s gone. At the same time, he’s not the first rookie to struggle and cutting bait early can lead to mistakes, like with Jake Elliott. I’m OK with letting it play out before I start bitching.

It doesn’t seem like it would cost much to keep the cafeteria open more and create some kind of area for players families. Other than those areas, I don’t have much to sympathize with the players about. Money has been spent and continues to be spent in a variety of areas, including the locker room, weight room, and practice bubble. The artificial playing surface is also being replaced and more is coming as part of the negotiations with the county. There’s not many teams doing as much in the past few years. To be fair, there was a lot of improvements needed to begin with. As the report states, the recent changes signal an improved confidence that the club is willing to invest in the facilities.

According to Spotrac, Mixon will make $5.75 million in 2024 with a cap number of $8.85 million. He will count $2.75 million in dead cap space if released. He’s no longer one of the highest paid RB after restructuring his deal last year and I doubt he’ll be cut.