Luke Kuechley Retiring

[Jason 3,842]

At 28.  I know it's not Bengals related, and I posted it in the around the NFL forum too, but this is pretty big.

 

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/28486171/panthers-lb-luke-kuechly-announces-retirement-28

[I_C_Deadpeople 279]

Great LB, but those damn injuries

[|High School Harry| 2,813]

Smart guy,

I also hope he was smart enough to invest wisely.

Carolina just took a hella hit that will affect their draft strategy significantly.

One more linebacker taken in the first round of the draft, one fewer candidate to slide

to the first pick in round two.

 

God  Bless and good luck to a guy I had wanted to see in orange and black since he was drafted.

[JC 1,319]

Now that is the guy who should be coaching up our linebackers next year.

[Cat 537]

I wanted him in Cincy bad, also. All those concussions though, turning his brain to soup. That's such a shame.

[saphead 1,054]

Good for him, get the hell out while you can. I remember him being carted off that one night and basically losing control of his emotions, that was hard to watch. 

 

[tibor75 16]

Keep hoping some day the Bengals will draft a killer LB.  I had high hopes for Burfict but he went crazy.  The trash just keeps on coming - Simmons, Spikes (no, he wasn't that great), Rey Maualuga, Carl Lawson, Jordan Willis, Malik Jefferson, Nick Virgin, Paul Dawson, Odell Thurman, Keith Rivers (god, what a bum) , etc etc.

 

The Stillers just draft Devin Bush... and you know he will be great

[|High School Harry| 2,813]

8 hours ago, tibor75 said:

Keep hoping some day the Bengals will draft a killer LB.  I had high hopes for Burfict but he went crazy.  The trash just keeps on coming - Simmons, Spikes (no, he wasn't that great), Rey Maualuga, Carl Lawson, Jordan Willis, Malik Jefferson, Nick Virgin, Paul Dawson, Odell Thurman, Keith Rivers (god, what a bum) , etc etc.

 

The Stillers just draft Devin Bush... and you know he will be great

Steve Tovar ... Joe Kelly

 

Even if the Bengals did trade down with the Miami Hairy Blow Holes (God forbid!) Clemson's Simmons wouldn't be there for their first pick.

LB crew so incredibly thin this year that I don't think there will even be anyone there at the top of the second round, even a slider, who

would be better than the best O Line or Wide Receiver who slides out of the first.

I'm thinking WR to shore up that crew with undependable John Loss III.

[Cat 537]

9 hours ago, tibor75 said:

Keep hoping some day the Bengals will draft a killer LB.  I had high hopes for Burfict but he went crazy.  The trash just keeps on coming - Simmons, Spikes (no, he wasn't that great), Rey Maualuga, Carl Lawson, Jordan Willis, Malik Jefferson, Nick Virgin, Paul Dawson, Odell Thurman, Keith Rivers (god, what a bum) , etc etc.

 

The Stillers just draft Devin Bush... and you know he will be great

Odell is the one that breaks my heart the most. He looked like a good on his rookie year.

[|SF2| 3,960]

3 minutes ago, Cat said:

Odell is the one that breaks my heart the most. He looked like a good on his rookie year.

Yeah, but the guy had a nasty habit of failing or missing drug tests.   Not much you can do about that. 

[fluhartz 2,118]

1 hour ago, Cat said:

Odell is the one that breaks my heart the most. He looked like a good on his rookie year.

same here.. he was so awesome.. just owned the middle of the field.. he was literally one of my favorite players instantly

the booze and drugs just had control of him... 

[I_C_Deadpeople 279]

I thought Caleb Miller was awesome..lol

 

Even randomness would suggest we could have hit on 1 or 2 LB's in the time ML was here. But no. 

[|SF2| 3,960]

13 minutes ago, I_C_Deadpeople said:

I thought Caleb Miller was awesome..lol

 

Even randomness would suggest we could have hit on 1 or 2 LB's in the time ML was here. But no. 

Burfict was a great LB 95% of the time. That other 5% though....

[HavePityPlease 227]

34 minutes ago, fluhartz said:

same here.. he was so awesome.. just owned the middle of the field.. he was literally one of my favorite players instantly

the booze and drugs just had control of him... 

The guy was an outlier - he wasn't very bright and he didn't even seem to understand plays very well... but he sure as hell knew where the football was and could close fast and make a perfect tackle.  I'll never forget the one game where the opponent made a really effective fake one direction and on TV it looked like EVERYONE on the Bengals fell for it, you see this guy running free on the other side, and it's like "oh gawd no..." then out of nowhere, there's Odell, fires right up on the guy and downs him for a loss with a perfect, hard tackle.  Nobody else within 20 yards.  IIRC Marvin was asked what the play was such that Odell was still in position and Marvin's answer was something along the lines of "he wasn't in position... he just saw the play and his instincts took over.  It's hard as coaches to see it but until he fails to make the play we won't change him".  Just a pure football player.

 

We all know what happened to him but at least as far as I'm concerned, the guy needed help and the league wasn't interested.  Sure there is a high probability he was beyond help, but if everyone recalls Odell was either the first or near the first player that Goodell ever punished, and it certainly seemed like he wanted to make an example of him.  I remember the articles by Hobson which quoted the players saying what Odell needs is to be with his teammates, if for no other reason to keep him away from the bad influences in his life.  Dude was banned from communicating with anyone - just basically kicked to the curb with "come back when you're better".  That changed later but at least for me Odell had the misfortune of being a test subject for Goodell.  From my perspective Odell was a serious alcoholic who needed intervention.  Lots of guys don't deserve help in the league, gang bangers like Hernandez, evil psychos like Greg Hardy, toxic fools like AB, but Odell never struck me as anything but a guy who wasn't very bright, was addicted to alcohol, and came from a place where trust was hard to come by.

[esjbh2 442]

3 hours ago, HavePityPlease said:

The guy was an outlier - he wasn't very bright and he didn't even seem to understand plays very well... but he sure as hell knew where the football was and could close fast and make a perfect tackle.  I'll never forget the one game where the opponent made a really effective fake one direction and on TV it looked like EVERYONE on the Bengals fell for it, you see this guy running free on the other side, and it's like "oh gawd no..." then out of nowhere, there's Odell, fires right up on the guy and downs him for a loss with a perfect, hard tackle.  Nobody else within 20 yards.  IIRC Marvin was asked what the play was such that Odell was still in position and Marvin's answer was something along the lines of "he wasn't in position... he just saw the play and his instincts took over.  It's hard as coaches to see it but until he fails to make the play we won't change him".  Just a pure football player.

 

We all know what happened to him but at least as far as I'm concerned, the guy needed help and the league wasn't interested.  Sure there is a high probability he was beyond help, but if everyone recalls Odell was either the first or near the first player that Goodell ever punished, and it certainly seemed like he wanted to make an example of him.  I remember the articles by Hobson which quoted the players saying what Odell needs is to be with his teammates, if for no other reason to keep him away from the bad influences in his life.  Dude was banned from communicating with anyone - just basically kicked to the curb with "come back when you're better".  That changed later but at least for me Odell had the misfortune of being a test subject for Goodell.  From my perspective Odell was a serious alcoholic who needed intervention.  Lots of guys don't deserve help in the league, gang bangers like Hernandez, evil psychos like Greg Hardy, toxic fools like AB, but Odell never struck me as anything but a guy who wasn't very bright, was addicted to alcohol, and came from a place where trust was hard to come by.

Well said...nailed it IMHO.

[Jamie_B 3,106]

5 hours ago, Cat said:

Odell is the one that breaks my heart the most. He looked like a good on his rookie year.

David Pollack is the one that makes me sad to think about. By the end of his rookie year before he got hurt he was the best LB on the field between him and Odell.

[Jamie_B 3,106]

For those who haven't seen it.

 

 

[|SF2| 3,960]

1 hour ago, Jamie_B said:

David Pollack is the one that makes me sad to think about. By the end of his rookie year before he got hurt he was the best LB on the field between him and Odell.

No shit.  It can be over in one play in the NFL.  Ask Ki-Jana Carter,  Brian Bosworth and Bo Jackson. 

[I_C_Deadpeople 279]

5 hours ago, SF2 said:

Burfict was a great LB 95% of the time. That other 5% though....

Indeed, but even he was not drafted.

[spicoli 385]

Agree on David Pollack. He would have been a true franchise player on defense, IMO. Just a freak of an athlete with fantastic intangibles. Easily one of the 5 best players in the history of the SEC. Oh what could have been..

[|SF2| 3,960]

1 hour ago, I_C_Deadpeople said:

Indeed, but even he was not drafted.

It was a pretty egregious 5%. 

[sparky151 470]

3 hours ago, spicoli said:

Agree on David Pollack. He would have been a true franchise player on defense, IMO. Just a freak of an athlete with fantastic intangibles. Easily one of the 5 best players in the history of the SEC. Oh what could have been..

 

Slow down there partner. Top 4 all time in SEC? No.

[fluhartz 2,118]

@Jamie_B man.... thank you so much for posting that video.  I had not seen it.

Makes me love Odell and also feel like shit for him even more.

Could have been one of the best 

 

I am super happy that he is in a good place now though...