Don't expect much from Ogbuehi this year and you won't be disappointed.

[Cincyfan78]

In your very long-winded answer, I see you convienently didn't answer my initial question.

You bitched about how they didn't do more.

I said they did all they could, including offering nearly the same amount of dollars DET gave Jones. The only thing DET gave him that the Bengals could not is an opportunity to be a #1. Jones has stated that is what he was looking for, and why he left.

You're bitching about him leaving is fine. Trying to pin it against the organization as a failure is not. It's wrong, and frankly, lazy.

short enough?

 

[ckhokie]

You bitched about how they didn't do more.

I said they did all they could, including offering nearly the same amount of dollars DET gave Jones. The only thing DET gave him that the Bengals could not is an opportunity to be a #1. Jones has stated that is what he was looking for, and why he left.

You're bitching about him leaving is fine. Trying to pin it against the organization as a failure is not. It's wrong, and frankly, lazy.

short enough?

Lol. Keep skirting.

Why don't you just answer the question?

Are we better now than we were at the end of the season?
Do you trust that management is doing everything they can to win?

If you answer 'No' to either of those, how is one out of line questioning what they're doing?

 

[alf8478]

I'm sorry but can someone show me where I can find a listing of all of the All-Pros and Pro Bowls that Sanu and Jones have.
You would think by the hysteria surrounding their departures that they were both #1 draft picks with can't miss talent.
News flash, its a passing league, you can find receivers anywhere.

And to answer the questions.

1-We're the same
2-No, and they have never done "everything they can" to win.

 

[Cincyfan78]

Lol. Keep skirting.

Why don't you just answer the question?

Are we better now than we were at the end of the season?
Do you trust that management is doing everything they can to win?

If you answer 'No' to either of those, how is one out of line questioning what they're doing?

There's no doubt it hurts, but your question was multi-pronged.

1 portion of your original question may have been if they are better, but another portion of your question was why they didn't try harder to retain them.

Anytime you lose players that start, it's going to affect your team. However, let's review the two WR's they left, and their impact on the team, and let's also look at the other portion of your questions: Did they do enough to get them back?

1st, losing Sanu is nothing more than a sneeze. Sorry. He just wasn't that good here. Great for a trick play now and again, but in his only chance to really shine in the 2014 season, he sucked. He was 5th in receptions last year behind a freakin' running back. Just stop it. He averaged barely over 1 more catch per game than Tyler Kroft. Think about that for a second. Tyler freakin' Kroft.

As for Jones, yes. It hurts he left, but again, the Bengals did try and retain him. They did offer him a very fair contract. They couldn't offer him the only thing he was looking for (outside of money), which was the chance to be a true #1 on a team. Maybe the Bengals were hoping that paying him well would be enough. In the end it was out of their control to re-sign him because of what he wanted. It happens.

When you draft well, and the Bengals have for quite some time now, eventually guys are going to leave. You have to hope the other guys you drafted step up to the plate. So far, the system has worked relatively well since 2010. Let's not go all chicken-little, the sky is falling yet. But more to your point about questioning them was the other points you were making about how the Bengals didn't do more. They did everything they could outside of ridiculously over-paying him to stay, and they did re-sign the 3 of the top 4 guys on their F/A list. That ain't shabby.

 

[ckhokie]

I think the Bengals drafting success has been somewhat overblown. We've drafted 3 (non ST) starters over the last 3 years. That's 27 picks. 11 of those picks have been in the first 3 rounds. I know everyone's not going to be a starter, but even the number of contributing guys is low.

I'm cool with us re-signing who we did. We really had no choice. We don't sign outside FAs.

WR is going to be a glaring issue this year no matter how much anyone wants to downplay it. Regardless of how good you think Jones and Sanu were, Dalton sucks when he doesn't have a bevy of options - which is going to be the biggest deal.

And we can bet the bank we're not going to draft a WR who will be able to come in and contribute Week 1

 

[Cincyfan78]

I think the Bengals drafting success has been somewhat overblown. We've drafted 3 (non ST) starters over the last 3 years. That's 27 picks. 11 of those picks have been in the first 3 rounds. I know everyone's not going to be a starter, but even the number of contributing guys is low.

I'm cool with us re-signing who we did. We really had no choice. We don't sign outside FAs.

WR is going to be a glaring issue this year no matter how much anyone wants to downplay it. Regardless of how good you think Jones and Sanu were, Dalton sucks when he doesn't have a bevy of options - which is going to be the biggest deal.

And we can bet the bank we're not going to draft a WR who will be able to come in and contribute Week 1

I see what you're saying, but it's also hard to be a starter coming onto this team where guys have pretty much remained entrenched.

Defensively: Dunlap, Atkins, Peko, Johnson. None of those four will be replaced by a draftee along the DL. Best case scenario is to get into the rotation, and even then you've had guys like Sims/Gilberry. Same goes for the LB crew. You've had Rey, Ray, and Burfict for some time, and Lemur. CB's have been Hall and Jones for a bit, and Dre recently getting the starting nod finally last year. Hard for guys to break in. Then you move to safety and it's the same story.

You can do pretty much the same thing across the offense as well. Over the past several seasons there just wasn't a ton of open positions to fill. Sure, we can all agree we'd love to see another Center and probably someone over RayM and Peko, but it's not like those spots have been inherently open. Just looking over the past 3 years and saying that there aren't any starters is a bit incomplete when you don't factor in the fact that this teams roster has been pretty well built, and well set.

I can agree that the Bengals probably should have looked at grabbing a WR last year when the talent pool was deep, and good options remained in the later rounds. They probably thought they could get at least one of those guys to sign, and did offer good money to Jones. Maybe they thought the contract would do it, I don't know. If you can categorize this as a misstep, it's a rare one considering the way this team has drafted and built this roster over the past 5 years.

 

[cincygrad]

I'm interested to see what Brandon Lafell does if he ends up signing here. He'll be in a good position given the presence of AJ and Eifert. I'd still like to see us draft a speed receiver early in the draft.

 

[Cincyfan78]

I'm interested to see what Brandon Lafell does if he ends up signing here. He'll be in a good position given the presence of AJ and Eifert. I'd still like to see us draft a speed receiver early in the draft.

Agreed. Looking back over his stats, I think he'd be a solid addition as a #2 (really a #3 behind Eifert). Injuries last year hurt, but overall his production is solid.

I agree that WR is still a pressing need, and would love to see a top WR with speed get to the Bengals.

As I've said before, the more I watch Braxton and read about him, the more intrigued I am. He probably would never be used correctly here, or given an early chance to help this offense, but you simply can't measure what he can do when he has the ball in his hands.

 

[cincygrad]

I hate the Buckeyes, but I would love Braxton Miller. At the very least, he replaces Sanu for gadget plays next season. And honestly, he wouldn't have to produce that much to be at Sanu's level for last year.

 

[ckhokie]

I don't think Braxton Miller will be a contributor on a roster outside of the occasional trick play for 2 years.

Not only does he need to learn the position (at an NFL level), but he's got to get good enough to take away snaps from starting WRs too. I don't see him being drafted by a team that has a bunch of holes... We'll see.

 

[alf8478]

I don't think Braxton Miller will be a contributor on a roster outside of the occasional trick play for 2 years.

Not only does he need to learn the position (at an NFL level), but he's got to get good enough to take away snaps from starting WRs too. I don't see him being drafted by a team that has a bunch of holes... We'll see.

Isn't that all Sanu contributed?

 

[DanBengalfan]

Isn't that all Sanu contributed?

he's basically the same athlete.

both make athletic catches and runs
both have trouble with the actual activities a receiver does throughout a game
both have played college QB

 

[ckhokie]

Isn't that all Sanu contributed?

Knowing what you do about Sanu, would you use a 1st or 2nd pick on him? That's what people are proposing.

You're making my point for me.

 

[cincygrad]

Miller has much more speed and potential than Sanu. He might only be a gadget guy in his first year, but he has the potential to be a dynamite playmaker for many years to come. If he somehow dropped all the way to the second round, I think you'd be crazy not to take him.

 

[alf8478]

Knowing what you do about Sanu, would you use a 1st or 2nd pick on him? That's what people are proposing.

You're making my point for me.

I dont watch or follow college football, so I dont have an opinion on where he should get drafted.
But I have gone on record saying that of the 2, I would have rather kept Sanu over Jones.

 

[ckhokie]

Miller has much more speed and potential than Sanu. He might only be a gadget guy in his first year, but he has the potential to be a dynamite playmaker for many years to come. If he somehow dropped all the way to the second round, I think you'd be crazy not to take him.

That's fine if we sign LaFell or have another plan for WR in the interim.

Drafting Braxton Miller will not help us fill the WR void we've got this year, maybe next.

 

[cincygrad]

That's fine if we sign LaFell or have another plan for WR in the interim.

Drafting Braxton Miller will not help us fill the WR void we've got this year, maybe next.

I've stopped counting on draft picks contributing much in year 1. "NFL-ready" does not appear to be a big thing for our coaching staff. I wouldn't be surprised to see us pick that kid from Notre Dame that wrecked his knee.

 

[DanBengalfan]

as an Ohio State alumi, we have a responsibility to groom him in order to leave us for a legitimate contender that doesn't choke every year.

 

[Cincyfan78]

I've stopped counting on draft picks contributing much in year 1. "NFL-ready" does not appear to be a big thing for our coaching staff. I wouldn't be surprised to see us pick that kid from Notre Dame that wrecked his knee.

I agree that I think this staff prefers to try and draft to groom, but again I'll point to the fact that they've not really had a ton of wide open positions to fill in the draft, either. I think it's been a combination of the two things that have prevented some guys from potentially getting more time as a rookie.

I guess we'll see how it all plays out.

 

[Kingspoint]

I see what you're saying, but it's also hard to be a starter coming onto this team where guys have pretty much remained entrenched.

Defensively: Dunlap, Atkins, Peko, Johnson. None of those four will be replaced by a draftee along the DL. Best case scenario is to get into the rotation, and even then you've had guys like Sims/Gilberry. Same goes for the LB crew. You've had Rey, Ray, and Burfict for some time, and Lemur. CB's have been Hall and Jones for a bit, and Dre recently getting the starting nod finally last year. Hard for guys to break in. Then you move to safety and it's the same story.

You can do pretty much the same thing across the offense as well. Over the past several seasons there just wasn't a ton of open positions to fill. Sure, we can all agree we'd love to see another Center and probably someone over RayM and Peko, but it's not like those spots have been inherently open. Just looking over the past 3 years and saying that there aren't any starters is a bit incomplete when you don't factor in the fact that this teams roster has been pretty well built, and well set.

I can agree that the Bengals probably should have looked at grabbing a WR last year when the talent pool was deep, and good options remained in the later rounds. They probably thought they could get at least one of those guys to sign, and did offer good money to Jones. Maybe they thought the contract would do it, I don't know. If you can categorize this as a misstep, it's a rare one considering the way this team has drafted and built this roster over the past 5 years.

Good answer. Spot on.