oldschooler Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 [size="5"][size="5"][b]Five takes [/b][/size] [/size][color="#666666"]Posted by hobsonschoice1 Posted on May 2, 2011 – 7:16 pm [/color]Five takes from NFL Draft weekend: [b]GOOD OPENING KARMA:[/b] Here's some good vibes for second-round pick Andy Dalton, quarterback, and first-round pick A.J. Green, wide receiver. In the only Opening Day game ever started by a Bengals rookie quarterback, Greg Cook engineered a 27-14 win over Miami at Nippert Stadium on Sept. 14, 1969. Cook outdueled Bob Griese's 327-yard day when two of his 11 completions went for 69- and 25-yard touchdown passes to wide receiver Eric Crabtree, also making his Bengals debut. Crabtree had played the previous three seasons for the Broncos, but you get the idea. The opener is in Cleveland, scene of the last road win by a Bengals rookie QB when Akili Smith beat the Browns on a last second two-pointer to Carl Pickens in 1999 in his first NFL start. [b]BEST NON-DRAFT NEWS:[/b] The one day Bengals kicker Mike Nugent was able to come into the facility last week, he was able to kick a football and make all of his handful of field-goal tries. And that's just five months after undergoing reconstructive surgery on his kicking knee. [b]TEA LEAVES:[/b] Trying to read the tea leaves on Chad Ochocinco, although the rhetoric from both The Ocho and head coach Marvin Lewis seems to make it pretty clear cut. But when the Bengals take two wide receivers in the same draft (Green and Stanford's Ryan Whalen in the sixth round), it usually means at least one major move. In 2010, the Bengals drafted Jordan Shipley (3) and Dez Briscoe (6) after they let loose Laveranues Coles, second in yards in '09. In 2008, the Bengals drafted Jerome Simpson (2) and Andre Caldwell (3) before '08 leading receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh left in free agency. We won't count 2006 with Reggie McNeal and Bennie Brazell. McNeal was a college quarterback and Brazell was an Olympic sprinter. In 2005, they took Chris Henry (3) and Tab Perry (6) and 2004 turned out to be the last year for former No. 1 pick Peter Warrick In 2001 they drafted The Ocho (2) and Houshmandzadeh (7) and their second-leading wide receiver, Craig Yeast, was gone for the next season. So the past 10 years would tell you there's going to be some sea change after a two-receiver draft. [b]WHICH FREE AGENTS?[/b] Unclear when the word is going to come on a permanent stay of the lockout, the Bengals spent Monday prioritizing their list of undrafted players. And, as head coach Marvin Lewis wondered on Saturday, if the free-agent gates open at the same time, which ones do you pursue first? The Bengals already have Kyle Cook and Reggie Stephens at center, so that's probably not a need, but NFL.com draft titan Gil Brandt says Dalton's center at TCU, Jake Kirkpatrick, is better than some of the guys that got drafted. And if they think they need another running back, Brandt likes Auburn's Mario Fannin. The 5-10, 231-pounder led the SEC with quality runs, converting 70.5 percent of the time for four yards per carry, third-down conversions, and touchdowns. And they watched Kentucky's Derrick Locke gouge them in the first half of the Senior Bowl. Yet they could have had them ahead of Baylor's Jake Finley, since they took him with their last pick deep in the seventh round with the mentality of picking the best free agent on the board. They had North Carolina cornerback Kendric Burney at the Senior Bowl. The best SAM backer on the board, Brandt says, looks to be 6-4, 230-pound Quentin Davie out of Northwestern. The productive-minded Bengals might like his 24 tackles for a loss, nine sacks, and five forced fumbles in 50 games. Another safety? They had Joe Lefeged of Rutgers at the Senior Bowl and he's another college producer with 238 tackles and eight forced fumbles in his career. [b]CARSON UPDATE: [/b]Somebody said they read Carson Palmer is one of the big winners of the weekend since the selection TCU quarterback Andy Dalton allows the Bengals to move on and trade him. As Sgt. Hulka said in Stripes, " Lighten up, Francis." If anything, the Dalton pick may make sure a trade doesn't come off. Now they're not forced to do much of anything, although they are mulling a veteran free agent quarterback for a staff that has all of 14 NFL passes. Draft picks are going to have to be involved if they trade Palmer, so maybe they're thinking why not wait until next year when a) they actually know what they're trading for and the things have some value and b ) they know what the rules of the draft are actually going to be. Maybe the pick sparks a compromise. Palmer comes in with the understanding Dalton is the QB of the future, plays for a year, takes the kid under his wing, and they call it even after 2011 and do a deal. And, of course, maybe not. But their best shot to contend is with No. 9, no one debates that. "The Bengals are a good team," says Pete Prisco of CBS Sports.com. "If Palmer is there, they're in the mix. If he's not, you have to scale that back. But they're a team on the verge." [url="http://blogs.bengals.com/2011/05/02/five-takes-2/"]http://blogs.bengals.com/2011/05/02/five-takes-2/[/url] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bengals1181 Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 [quote]BEST NON-DRAFT NEWS: The one day Bengals kicker Mike Nugent was able to come into the facility last week, he was able to kick a football and make all of his handful of field-goal tries. And that's just five months after undergoing reconstructive surgery on his kicking knee.[/quote] great news. He wasn't slated to start kicking until tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheBeaverHunter Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 [quote]"The Bengals are a good team," says Pete Prisco of CBS Sports.com. "If Palmer is there, they're in the mix. If he's not, you have to scale that back. But they're a team on the verge."[/quote] It seems like we have been on the [b]"verge"[/b] for 8 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eva4ben-gal Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 [quote name='TheBeaverHunter' timestamp='1304426787' post='990410'] It seems like we have been on the [b]"verge"[/b] for 8 years. [/quote] It's because the team continually performs below its talent level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheBeaverHunter Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 [quote name='eva4ben-gal' timestamp='1304441742' post='990493'] It's because the team continually performs below its talent level. [/quote] First it was Leslie's fault, then it was Chuck's fault on D....then Brat's fault on O.....if we under perform again who is to blame? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumble In the Jungle Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 [quote name='TheBeaverHunter' timestamp='1304443578' post='990499'] First it was Leslie's fault, then it was Chuck's fault on D....then Brat's fault on O.....[b]if we under perform again who is to blame?[/b] [/quote] [b]Yo Mama![/b] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jom112 Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 [quote name='TheBeaverHunter' timestamp='1304443578' post='990499'] First it was Leslie's fault, then it was Chuck's fault on D....then Brat's fault on O.....if we under perform again who is to blame? [/quote] I've been blaming Robert Geathers since '07 and he hasn't let me down... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldcat Posted May 4, 2011 Report Share Posted May 4, 2011 The Browns open at home [b]again[/b]? Isn't that like 16 years in a row now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rumble In the Jungle Posted May 5, 2011 Report Share Posted May 5, 2011 At least we get to see the Bengals on day one if there is a day one1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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