Bengals out-coached in loss to Oakland

The loss to Oakland yesterday was a tough one to swallow for a lot of different reasons. The offensive line couldn't block, the secondary was a disaster, ball-security was a concern and we managed to muff yet ANOTHER field goal....but in my opinion, coaching was to blame in the 20-17 loss to the Oakland Raiders.

Although running back Bernard Scott, who managed 119 yards on 21 carries, had a decent day...much of those yards came on a 61 yard run. Marvin has made it perfectly clear, the Bengals plan to stick with the run...which is fine, to a certain extent. However, when is it time to abandon the run and start throwing? The Bengals attempted 43 rushes during the game, surely the passing attack had been set up and ready to roll....apparently not in offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski's mind.

A successful running game is vital to the success of a team in the NFL...you cannot be one-dimensional. However, anyone that's ever played some level of football could point out that the Raiders defense came out in the second half primed to defend it. For much of the second half, the Raiders had everyone except the two corners and safeties in the box...but we kept trying! Why did the Bengals coaching staff completely abandon the pass? I'm thankful for our MUCH improved rushing attack, but it's still not our bread and butter.

In my opinion, Palmer should have been dropped back in the shotgun, not under center as the Raiders blitz was penetrating our line with little resistance, and threw a couple quick slants...like the one completed to Chad OchoCinco in the 4th quarter. You have to keep the defense honest...we played right into their strength.

While it's hard to really come out and bash Bob Bratkowski considering we're 7-3....let us not forget how inconsistent this offense has been all season. The guy running the offense is still the same guy who everyone wanted fired last off-season. It's hard to imagine what we could be if someone calling the plays knew what he was doing.

That's enough of that...

Earlier in the week before the Pittsburgh game on "Bengals Weekly," Bengals special-teams coach Darrin Simmons said that one disappointment was Andre Caldwell's return game....so why is he out there in a critical moment when ball-security is key? I like Andre Caldwell and hope to see him in stripes for a long time, but the guy is NOT a return man. He needs to realize that he isn't Reggie Bush or Devin Hester with great quickness that can change direction on a dime...he just isn't! There was absolutely nothing wrong with his return up until the point where he stopped and tried to change direction. Bengal returners: NORTH AND SOUTH! Where was Bernard Scott? Quan Cosby? Cosby has one role on this team...return punts! To warrant a roster spot I think he has to be used more on kickoffs. Caldwell should never be seen again returning kicks.

As for the offensive line....they had a difficult time blocking the blitzing Raiders defense, but we should have called more plays to keep them off-balance. They need to play better!

Overall, it was an ugly game. Entirely too many mistakes! The only saving grace was that the entire AFC North lost too. The Bengals play the Browns on Sunday, and if you watched the game on Sunday you'll know that the Browns came out firing against the Lions. The secondary is going to have a big red bullseye on their backs from here on out....Trent, Ndukwe and Crocker are on notice!

Oh yeah...as for Morgan Trent, the guy was a 6th round pick and has played pretty well up to this point for us...he deserves a pass. As an Ohio State fan it's easy to hate on Trent who looked extremely lost on Sunday, but give the guy another chance...it's not like David Jones would have been much better! If one play determines a players career then Caldwell and Graham should be on their way out today!

We lost, plain and simple....lets move on and focus on the Browns.

More Breaking News: Utecht, Chatman released

In even more Bengals news, the team has decided to cut veterans Ben Utecht and Antonio Chatman.

As far as I'm concerned, the Chatman move is loooooong overdue. That guy hasn't produced since he was signed by the Bengals back in 2006. As for Utecht, I've never been a huge fan of Utecht as a football player. From what I hear, Ben is a fantastic human being but with all the injuries he's sustained it's probably best that he hangs up the cleats for good for his own personal well-being.

Weighing in on Larry Johnson

I gave myself some time to read up and consult with colleagues and friends about this move and I've tried to see it from every angle. I do not like the signing of Larry Johnson.

He will provide incredible depth behind Benson, Scott and Leonard but like many scrapheap players this Bengals team has on it, Johnson has a lot of baggage. His published comments via Twitter and checkered accusations drove the Chiefs to cut their two-time Pro Bowler.

If you look into the things he has been accused of by women and the very clear comments he made on Twitter that fueled his exit from KC, it's pretty easy to see that Larry Johnson is simply an asshole. And assholes can really throw off the locker room chemistry.

The counter argument is that we have a stable locker room with veteran leadership at basically every position and one guy who is an MVP Candidate and a bunch of other guys that want to make the best of their second chance.And that's a solid argument....Except no one should be surprised this signing happened. The moment Johnson was released the Bengals were on the tip of every analysts tongue as a potential landing spot for the troubled player seeking a redemption.

All this signing does in the long term is strengthen the Mike Brown Doctrine of going for the bargain, despite the red flags associated. This method replaces the need of a legitimate scouting department. The Bengals scouting department is so small it is more like a scouting partnership or scouting group.

So in the mean time we will enjoy all of the Bengals wins and being in the national spotlight, but that spotlight might turn into blinding sunlight if one of our redemption players goes astray. While this team strengthened their depth with asshole Larry Johnson, they took on a bigger debt of ridicule should he continue to be a real asshole.

That type of media attention could wreck this locker room like a certain fist fight during halftime of a certain 2005 playoff game.

Bob is alive and cheering

When Zane speaks, stuff gets done. That's right I AM HERE. I apologize for my recent hiatus but working in retail gets pretty insane this time of year so my free time has been about as limited as Big Ben's ability to escape the Bengals pass rush.

Now for a little home state pimping...The Anderson Redskins are kicking ass in the playoffs, UC is murdering fools, OSU smells like (Pete)Rose's and the Bengals are better than the enviable Patriots. Seriously I leave town and all heaven breaks loose.

And moments ago the OCNN(OchoCinco News Network) reported that Larry Johnson is a Bengal.

Things I took from Yesterday's statement win:

-Marvin Lewis' game management skills have improved exponentially since he took control of this team.

-As unpopular as this comment is going to be, this team is a more mature team without TJ. Remember the last time the Bengals overtook the Steelers in the AFC North? TJ led the shit-talking parade and towel stomping. This time around?

"It’s scary because everybody’s going to be patting us on the back and telling us how good we are," Carson Palmer said, "We’re not good enough to win the Super Bowl now, we have a long way to go. We’re not good enough to make a dominant playoff run, we have a long way to go."

-Cedric Benson might be an MVP candidate, but this defense is the Most Valuable Unit right now. Even with the hip injury and a sputtering offense otherwise, the defense dominated this game.

-Does Big Ben realize that if you use the pump fake three times every play it will no longer an influence on the coverage? Not only that, but the pump fake only works against zone coverage because the defenders eyes are on the QB. The Bengals were playing mostly man coverage on Sunday.

-Lastly, I am the happiest sports fan in Boston. Belichick's brain fart, the Celtics back-to-back losses and the Bruins inconsistently has made people in this city make their middle finger their itchy trigger finger. But I'll keep chanting Who Dey and wearing orange and black no matter the violence threatened.

Breaking News: Larry Johnson to sign with the Bengals, and Blogging is HARD!!

First and foremost, it appears that the Bengals have signed another disgruntled, unemployed running back in former Kansas City Chiefs superstar, Larry Johnson. According to ESPN, Johnson is heading to Cincinnati for a workout and if he passes a physical, could be signed later today for league minimum. Read the article here...

My initial feeling on signing L.J. is that it's a bad idea...but if the Cedric Benson signing has taught us anything, it's to give a guy a chance before we decide to judge him. Benson had the entire NFL against him at one point and he came to Cincinnati and worked hard to restore his reputation and it's certainly paying dividends to both Benson and the organization.

Oh yeah...and did I mention that the contract could be for league minimum? Larry Johnson, the one time pro bowl running back, as a backup AND for league minimum? I like it if he can shut his mouth and stays out of trouble...but he needs to remember ONE THING, this is CEDRIC BENSON'S TEAM (let's hope he is back on the field soon!)


On a side note....I have been catching shit all week for not posting as often as I once did, I apologize! Blogging is difficult work that requires a lot of time and thought....a couple things that I don't always have a lot of. I have no idea where Bob has been, he is MIA in Boston! Hopefully he hasn't been transformed into a Patriots fan!