Penalty flags were on the field more than Andre Smith....
The Bengals played their fourth exhibition game last night. Yipee! Thanks to the booby prize for being selected to play in the Hall of Fame game 3 weeks ago, the Bengals still have one more meaningless preseason game to go.
Although trying to extract meaning from an exhibition game is like trying to get the truth out of the brain trust in Washington… let’s pretend that last night’s ”game” was important enough to analyze.
The GOOD: After Adam Jones ran back the opening kickoff past midfield, the Bengals starters on Offense looked ready for the Patriots in week 1. Carson was sharp, throwing TD passes to Chad Stupid Name and #1 draft choice Jerome Gresham, while my favorite new Bengal Jordan Shipley had a team-high 5 receptions. Cedric looked strong as usual even though he and the first team O got stuffed on a 4th and 1.
The biggest surprise in last night’s “game”: The Bengals were visited by the No Huddle Offense, welcoming it like long-lost family returning home for an unannounced visit.
The BAD: The starting Defense did their best impersonation of Swiss cheese, leaving plenty of holes and a gamy odor in its wake. Pressure on the opposing QB continues to be as elusive as is sustainability to government spending. While JTO kept the Bengals in the game while he was under center, ‘Lil Palmer showed that he is not ready for prime time, throwing a pick-six from the Bengals 20 to put the “game” out of reach. (Good thing for Jordan that the Bengals’ management is big fan of nepotism, which should keep him safely on the roster.)
The UGLY: On the injury front, rookie Cornerback Brandon Ghee had a nasty helmet-to-helmet meeting with a Buffalo Bill, leaving Ghee motionless for several minutes. (What would preseason football be without the threat of career-threatening injuries, eh?)
Of course, any “Ugly” list would be without credibility if we didn’t mention Andre”Big Tub Of Goo” Smith. The Bengals decision to draft him # 1 in the 2008 draft appears to be about as ugly as anything seen on or off the field.
In hindsight, a better choice than the Bengals 1st round pick in '08?
But perhaps even uglier than Ghee’s collision and Smith’s work ethic was the Bengals collecting 12 yellow hankies. It wasn’t enough to average 10 penalties per game before last night, so they outdid themselves last night with 12. While it appears that a Marvin Lewis team and penalties go together like Congress and deficit, we at Oddbounces cannot let this rest without protest. Is it really too much to ask the Bengals stop giving away ~100 yards in field position every game? The sort-of Bengals game against the sort-of Colts Thursday is their last chance to figure out how before it will start costing them W’s. Is that too much to ask, Marvin?
Nuff said.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
The first team passing game looked very promising. I’m digging the Gresham draft pick!
By far the two biggest additions are Gresham and Pacman. Gresham looks more and more like a Kellen Winslow type (sr., not that a-hole son of his) … and if Pacman can just be a weapon on PR and KRs, that’s a major big deal. On D its Geno.
Timzilla, I think it’s dangerous to ask Pacman to be a “weapon” of any kind; it could give him some bad ideas from his sordid past. (Just to be safe, let’s only refer to his as “Adam”, OK?)
CCQB: Also LOVE the Gresham pick. But I think we’re missing another guy on offense that will keep the chains moving…Shipley. I’m buzzing over this kid’s crisp routes and flypaper hands. Given these precious new outlets and a strong running game – and assuming (a BIG assumption, I know) that the OL will keep Carson’s jersey relatively clean – Palmer will have very little excuse this year for anything less than 65 percent passing accuracy and a boatload of yards. I think he’ll get it done.
If Gresham is as good as he looks he’ll make all the other receivers better – especially Shipley. Having a real tight end changes everything for Palmer.