A Few Quick Notes...

PalmerToCJ · 06-15-2008, 04:35 PM

DeDe's injury will likely put him on PUP.

The staff is pleased with Rudi/Perry in terms of health.

Bobbie Williams is being worked out as the backup center with Andrews moving to RG in that event. He won't be starting however, they're just frustrated with Santucci.

A very encouraging blurb...

Quote:

HEALTHY: Bratkowski and Lewis were pleased with the performances of the team's top two tailbacks, Rudi Johnson and Chris Perry, both returning from injuries.

Perry hasn't played since fracturing and dislocating his ankle in a November 2006 game at Cleveland.

"It's a real blessing right now," Bratkowski said of Perry's health. "I certainly hope he can sustain it and maintain it, because that will give us some juice we've been lacking a little bit."

Johnson is a thicker 225 pounds than he has been the past couple of seasons.

"Rudi had a great minicamp, and I told him so," Bratkowski said. "He ran the ball well and was very aggressive in his running. His technique and running were very good."

Said Lewis: "It's good that they are in that position, and we're still six weeks out, seven weeks, from training camp."

Glenn Holt is working out as the #3.

Best of all, the defense is frustrating the offense. They've all mentioned it and Joseph seems to be the man out there.

Quote:

"Hey, they're playing a very physical and hands-on style of defense, which, if you haven't been working and preparing against that, it takes you awhile to get back used to it," Bengals offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski said. "It's a very good style of defense."

The new hands-on play is the result of the defense installed by first-year Bengals coordinator Mike Zimmer.

"It's one of the most disruptive things in the pass game when they can get their hands on people and slow down the process of when the guy gets to where he's supposed to be," Bratkowski said. "It throws things out of rhythm. They did a good job of that."

Third-year starting cornerback Johnathan Joseph has taken especially well to the new style. He was in Johnson's facemask all morning during practice. Joseph even shoved Johnson once after an errant pass.

On another play, in which rookie receiver Jerome Simpson appeared to be ill-timed on a quick route, Joseph broke to pick off the ball in stride and return it for a touchdown.

The link for a decent amount of the info:
http://beta.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs...806150434/1066

themaninblack · 06-16-2008, 10:13 PM

Really like to hear that about the defense and our RB's. Could be a very nice season if those two groups play well.

BengalMedic · 06-17-2008, 09:28 AM

If Rudi and Perry are healthy and ready to go at the start of the season, you would have to think Carson is MORE than happy with that !!! Add in Utecht as a pass catcher and things are looking pretty nice for our offense !!!

Here's to hoping the Bengals continue to fly under the radar and teams overlook them !!!

themaninblack · 06-17-2008, 02:32 PM

We've got a lot of IFs at this point but things could be really nice in Bengaldom this season.

StripedWalrus · 06-17-2008, 09:39 PM

Yea I was reading some articles about Joseph. The defensive staff seems to be incredibly impressed with him this year.

themaninblack · 06-17-2008, 10:53 PM

JJ has the ability to be a Champ Bailey like CB with more experience. And with a pretty darn good player in Leon Hall next to him they could be quite the tandem.

StripedWalrus · 06-17-2008, 11:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by themaninblack

JJ has the ability to be a Champ Bailey like CB with more experience. And with a pretty darn good player in Leon Hall next to him they could be quite the tandem.

Thats def true. We are also starting to develop a front 7 which will only further help them back there. I see big things in JJ's future!

Geo · 06-17-2008, 11:10 PM

Too bad about 3D.

PalmerToCJ · 06-18-2008, 01:11 AM

The part I like most is the offense getting frustrated by the looks of the defense and talking about the pressure.

Yes, you could chalk this up to general preseason hype but I haven't heard this with the current setup of this team. You never heard the offense struggling against Frazier or Breshnahan's defense.

That and JJ getting a little chippy with CJ only wins me over more with him. The sky is the limit with him. He's easily the player on our team that has the best chance to emerge as a top 5 guy at his position. I mean his biggest fault as a rookie was he couldn't catch...

BengalMedic · 06-18-2008, 07:46 AM

JJoe's thing that most people overlook is his speed. The injury to his foot last year played havoc with his game, but that is all healed and we should see more of what we saw his rookie season and end of last season.

The style of game the defense is going to be playing with more bump and run is EXACTLY the type of defense suited for JJoe. His recovery speed is unparalleled and I wouldn't bet against a shot at the pro bowl for him coming into his third year healthy.

Hall is pretty physical, but lacks the speed of JJoe. If I had to pick a concern, it would be that Hall didn't play that type of defense in Michigan, but I would also say that Hall is smarter than your average bear and should still have little to no issue, especially with the young safeties we have to assist.

PalmerToCJ · 06-18-2008, 10:58 AM

Agreed on Hall/JJ. Hall was probably better suited for last years defense, while JJ is most definitely better suited for this years. I could see Hall being way more physical than JJ but in the event he doesn't jam them good enough he's screwed. JJ could give them a 5 step head start and still run them down lol.

themaninblack · 06-18-2008, 02:24 PM

I don't think Hall is going to have much of a problem with this type of defense at all. He's very physical and while he doesn't have INSANE recovery like JJ does, he's no Tory James either.

Bengals78 · 06-18-2008, 04:20 PM

I think Hall will get help over the top from White. IF Hall gets beat, White will be there to rectify it with a hit. JJ can afford to get beat because only a few receivers can just flat out out run him on the field to a point he cant recover. Luckily, one of them is still on our team.

BengalMedic · 06-19-2008, 08:20 AM

Agreed, with this type of defense, I believe one side of the field should be pretty much locked down. I'm not down on Hall whatsoever, but think last years defensive style was more to his liking. If he fails to reroute the WR off the line, then I see him having a more difficult time. However, as mentioned, the safeties will give help over the top. Not really a concern in the grand scheme of things and think this might be what is needed in order to help the D-line provide more of a pass rush. Things should look a bit different and I for one, am very happy about that !!!

StripedWalrus · 06-19-2008, 12:46 PM

I guess it all comes down to this. If your Dline cant get to QB in time...then give him more time. With the upgrades we added this year I think it will definantly help the Pass rushing game. I dont know though how it is going to help the run stopping game. Has there been any news on that?

BengalMedic · 06-20-2008, 07:33 AM

I havent' heard anything about the run stopping side of things either and that has been an ongoing problem since forever and why Ellis was such an attractive target in the draft. NO, I'm not complaining about Rivers either...

I would love nothing more than to see Sims come on and be the force most think he can be, but I just don't see it happening sooner rather than later. The one I would love to see come on even moreso than Sims, is Shirley. If he can get his sh*t together and learn the defense, this guy will be a beast. He would also give the defense the chance of running more 3-4 sets with him at the NT position. While I admit, that is something that will also happen later, it's one I hope gets pushed along quickly.

The run defense wasn't as bad as I and others might think when you look at the second half of last season. They held it together pretty well for the most part and the pass defense seemed to fall apart. I think that happened due to the complete LOSS of anything resembling a pass rush. Hopefully we've done enough to improve in both of those areas and the addition of Zimmer's attitude will motivate these guys !!!

themaninblack · 06-20-2008, 01:15 PM

I'm not going to get my hopes up with Shirley, he would be an added bonus IMO. Peko next to Sims could be a force in the middle.

StripedWalrus · 06-20-2008, 01:47 PM

The way things are looking right now...it looks to be Thornton and Peko. There really hasnt been much news around Sims and SHirley. THough Shirley has been in court so far most of the time. Then again no news is good news =)

BengalMedic · 06-20-2008, 02:05 PM

I to believe we will continue to see more of the usual at the DT position and all I can say is, I hope it's enough...

themaninblack · 06-20-2008, 03:02 PM

Thornton will probably get most of the reps but Sims should be in the rotation from the get go.

BengalMedic · 06-23-2008, 06:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by themaninblack

Thornton will probably get most of the reps but Sims should be in the rotation from the get go.

Here's to hoping that is the case and Thornton's character and leadership rub off on the youngsters !!! For his salary, THEY BETTER !!!

Bengals78 · 06-27-2008, 09:56 AM

My hopes on Shirley are that he just stays out of trouble. Playing time should be a minimum unless he proves it at practice he deserves more.
From my understanding, his court case seems to be going fairly well and should be resolved before too long.

themaninblack · 06-27-2008, 07:21 PM

I thought it was pretty much done with?

BengalMedic · 06-28-2008, 07:34 AM

"IF" Shirley can keep himself out of trouble AND learn the defense, this guy will be a monster in the middle of our defensive line. He's the type of fat body we have been looking for. Big, strong, and can actually run a little bit. If wouldn't have had the legal issues, this guy would have went FAR sooner in the draft.

Could be a huge pick, could be absolute garbage...

Bengals78 · 06-28-2008, 07:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BengalMedic

"IF" Shirley can keep himself out of trouble AND learn the defense, this guy will be a monster in the middle of our defensive line. He's the type of fat body we have been looking for. Big, strong, and can actually run a little bit. If wouldn't have had the legal issues, this guy would have went FAR sooner in the draft.

Could be a huge pick, could be absolute garbage...

for a guy his size, shirley can run more than a little bit. guy can move.