[ Blue Man Sings The Whites ]

Hope there's still someone out there interested in reading this after more than a month away. :) For anyone who's a newcomer, this is the story of my second season in charge of everyone's favourite lovable losers, the Cincinnati Bengals. To get the mechanics out of the way - I play 6-minute quarters on All-Pro, with a slightly modified version of RockBottom's slider settings that have been doing the rounds on this board roughly forever. If you're interested in knowing what's gone before, my first season is comprehensively covered in the thread I Am Bengal, Hear Me Roar.

Oh, and if you want to read about the first season and haven't done so yet, go do it now, because otherwise I'm about to mention how it ended, and you'll lose all the dramatic tension of the nailbiting finale. Or something. Go on, go check out season 1. It'll change your life.

Who is more fool, the fool who writes forty thousand words about a few games played on a console football simulation, or the fool who wants to read it?

I'll leave that question to the philosophers. ;)

Aaaaanyway.... still here? Good. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times in Bengalville. On the one hand, the team had massively exceeded expectations with a march all the way to the Wild Card game. On the other hand, there was the sense of missed opportunity brought on by the heartbreaking loss to the Colts in overtime.

"We'll be back, boys." I'd said in the locker-room after the Indianapolis game. "Don't you worry. They haven't heard the last of us."

It's the sort of thing you're supposed to say under the circumstances.

And so, even as the Rams were performing in a way that suggested that the game's stats were written prior to their frankly hilarious collapse this season, thumping our arch-nemesis Pittsburgh in the Superbowl, my coaching staff and I were sitting down to plan world domination. First job - to assess what we had, and what we needed.

Well, the first thing we needed was a new kicker, after the Old Man Of The Hills, Gary Anderson, announced his retirement. Nuts. Then came the horror that was Player Progression.

Good news first - quarterback of the future Akili Smith (stop laughing at the back) picked up 5 OVR points to reach the dizzy heights of 73 OVR, while offensive cornerstone Corey Dillon racked up just 2 OVR points... but considering he was starting from 93 OVR, that wasn't a bad result. ;) 3rd wideout and fumbleitis-prone punt returner Chad Johnson grabbed a massive 6 OVR points to go to 70... but all of this was small beer compared to America's sweetheart, record-breaking, Pro-Bowl-bothering rookie TE Daniel Graham, whose new overall rating of 81 represented an increase of 8 points! Woo-fricking-hoo!

Aaaaaand then there's the offensive line, who lost an average of 3-4 points each, our defensive line, who went down by a similar amount and, most aggravating of all, defensive captain Takeo Spikes who dropped an incomprehensible 5 OVR points to go down to an overall rating of 86. Alright, so some of those were older players, and Spikes lost nearly half the season to injury, but, you know... damn. And damn, I say again. I couldn't believe my eyes as the computer systematically ripped the heart out of my offence and defence.

But I will have my revenge. Oh yes, I will have my revenge.

Feeling somewhat aggrieved after the Grim Reaper's visit to my locker-room, it was time to sit down and decide exactly where we were planning on going next year, and what we'd need to carry us there on both sides of the ball.

OFFENCE
Scary though it might seem, the offence looked pretty much beyond improvement to me. Of course we didn't have league MVP candidates for every position (except HB and FB), but what we had was a group of pretty young, pretty talented players who would find a way to put points on pretty much anyone. Chad Johnson's continued development has given us the speed-receiver I thought we were lacking last year, and while the atrophy of the offensive line is a concern, as a group they still average about a 75 OVR, which is respectable enough. All we need to weatherproof the unit, in my eyes, is a couple of backups - there's a big dropoff at HB from Corey Dillon to Brandon Bennett (OVR 63), and we have no reserve fullback at all. I'm pretty confident of picking up a couple of unsigned rookies at the end of the draft to fill those roles, so that leaves me free to spend my draft-picks on bringing the D up to scratch. The game plan this year will be much the same as it was last - run first, don't ask Akili Smith or, God help us, Jon Kitna to throw deep too often, keep the opposition offence off the field as much as humanly possible.

DEFENCE
Our biggest shortcoming as a team is our weak secondary. This is clear in my eyes, it's clear in the fans' eyes, it's clear in the media's eyes, it's clear in the eyes of anybody WITH eyes. Getting this fixed is Job Number 1. Our safeties aren't amazing, but with the promotion of SS Aric Morris (OVR 70) past Chad Cota (OVR 72), they're at least both young and growing into their roles. Our corners, however, just aren't good enough. Kevin Dyson (OVR 75) would be a great nickelback - if he wasn't 1st in the depth chart by a mile. Getting at least one good, preferably young, cornerback from somewhere is absolutely vital.

I said the secondary was the defence's biggest shortcoming. I didn't say it was the only shortcoming. It's decision time in the front 7 - are we continuing in our 3-4 scheme, in which case we badly need a LOLB to replace Steve Foley (OVR 69)? Or are we going to switch to a 4-3, meaning that we have to get a quality second DT? Partly it'll depend on who was available in the draft, of course, but if I have the choice I'll try and go for the former option, because I like the flexibility that having an extra linebacker on the field brings - you can blitz him, you can spy with him, you can drop him back into coverage... try doing that with a 300-pound tackle and see how far you get!

We need to be more aggressive in coverage this year. Last season's failings against the pass were mainly down to individual errors, but what made the problem worse was that the weakness of my back 4 made me reluctant to commit my front 7 and leave the corners without help. We simply have to find a way to get pressure on the quarterback or it's going to be another long, long season watching wideouts disappear downfield.

SPECIAL TEAMS
Our return coverage last year was indifferent at best, but hopefully the prospective influx of talent on defence will trickle down to give us a generally upgraded unit. Obviously, we need a new kicker, but for the time being I'll put up with Nick Harris (OVR 69) at punter on the grounds that he's young, he's cheap and we've more pressing problems elsewhere. The other spot on special-teams that needs addressing is our punt-returner - Chad Johnson had a pretty good average but an alarming tendancy to cough the ball up at the slightest provocation, so in the late rounds of the draft or while I'm browsing the unsigned rookies in the free-agent bin, I'll try to find someone with a little bit of speed but who doesn't wear buckets on his hands.

The free-agent market was disappointing - there really were very few players available who fit the holes we had. Trolling around the bargain-basement, we picked up DT Keith Hamilton (OVR 72) to play our nickel and dime packages, and to back up Sam Adams in the 3-4. While I was in a spending mood, I splashed a little cash to sign ex-Vikings FB/TE Jim Kleinsasser (OVR 64) to be a general utility blocking-back.

On to the draft, then, and regrettably the notes I made pre-Christmas on exactly who was picked up where have gone a-wandering, but once wheeler-dealering had been done and the dust had settled, my shopping-trolley was filled like this:

1st - Aaron HALL (LOLB, Temple, OVR 78)
2nd - Jonathon CRANE (CB, Washington, OVR 76)
3rd - Roderick REED (DT, Florida State, OVR 68)
4th - Adam SMITH (HB, Colorado, OVR 67)
5th - Lawrence STILLS (K, Rutgers, OVR 54)
5th –Jason HARRIS (WR, Ole Miss, OVR 62)
6th - Tom LEWIS (CB, Nevada, OVR 63)
7th – Hugh LANGHAM (SS, Iowa, OVR 61)

All in all, I was pretty pleased - particularly when I discovered that while big-tackling Rod Reed only rated 68 at his listed DT position, when shoved him in at defensive end his OVR went all the way up to 78! He’ll help address the weakness on the left side of our front seven along with our first-round pick, Aaron Hall, who looks a quality player. Hall’s intelligent, quick to the ball and, while he’s not the strongest linebacker in the team, he tackles as well as anyone. Jon Crane was a particularly sweet payoff after I gambled a bit by not taking a corner in the first round (the CPU making up to me for assassinating my o-line, I think). Jon’s a quick, physical DB who'll make plays against the run as well as the pass. Adam Smith, the halfback, we shall call... Mini-Corey. He'll be hard to bring down, he's very nimble, with good hands and a useful turn of speed - basically, a not-as-good clone of Number 28, which is just what we were looking for. CB Tom Lewis is rated 91 OVR as a kick-returner, which isn't bad for a 5th round pick. Jason Harris should eventually replace Willie Jackson as the team’s resident possession receiver – he’s very short on pace, but is strong with good hands and a great burst. Bit disappointed in the kicker and the strong safety, who looked decent on paper, but that late in the day I wasn’t expecting much more. Still 3 full-fledged defensive starters, a good backup halfback and a quality kick return specialist - not shabby. Not too shabby at all.

The final task in the roster merry-go-round was a quick trawl through the unsigned rookies in the free-agent pool. This turned up one Marquise Reeves, a sure-handed 69 OVR running-back out of Maryland boasting a staggering 98 SPD. A bit of a one-trick pony, for sure, but what a trick... I snatched him up for peanuts with the intention of using the boy on special-teams. Nice. We also hovered up 66 OVR run-stopping centre Tom Williams from Iowa, and Tulane’s Ray Hanson, a OVR 63 right end, to add a bit of depth to both lines. Rocking.

And so, with that final icing in place on the cake, it only remained to lead the 2003 Cincinnati Bengals out onto the field of conflict.

...

 I’ll try and hurry it up a bit through the pre-season so’s we can get to the meat of the season. First up, Atlanta and Mike Vick visit Fortress Bengalville...

ATL 31-36 CIN
Game Notable For: Bengals scoring 22 points in the 4th quarter to come back from 17 down. Upside: Fantastic performance from front 7. Atlanta held to 34 yards rushing, with 8 tackles for loss, 2 forced fumbles and 5 sacks, including 1 each for rookies Aaron Hall and Roderick Reed. Downside: Despite addition of Jon Crane, our secondary still looks like our secondary. Vick racks up 188 yards and 3 scores in the first half, mostly throwing at Andre Dyson and our nickel and dime backs, Kurt Kittner adds 121 more and another TD in the second.
Stat Of The Game: Cincinnati 5 of 5 on 4th down during the comeback, including conversions of 6, 8 and 11 yards.

CIN 42-35 ARI
Game Notable For: 35 points scored in 4th quarter (21 by Arizona, 14 by Cincinnati).
Upside: Attack Of The Rookie Halfbacks. Adam Smith gets 85 yards on 19 carries and plunders a couple of TDs, Marquise Reeves has 4 punt returns for 89 yards.
Downside: Score was 42-21 with 1 minute to play. Twice Plummer goes after Dyson, twice we cough up 60+ yard TD scores.
Stat Of The Game: 5 different Bengal receivers have catches of 20+ yards. Who says this isn’t a big-play offence?

DET 14-42 CIN
Game Notable For: Detroit lead twice, get pegged back twice then Cincinnati score 28 unanswered points in the second half.
Upside: The first game in which the entire offence clicks. 300+ yards through the air with 3 scores, 130 more on the ground with 3 more.
Downside: Go on, take a wild guess. Joey Harrington 15/19 for 199 yards and 2 scores would be a pretty good day if he managed it over 4 quarters, never mind 2. Only when Harrington left the field did our secondary look even halfway-effective.
Stat Of The Game: Backup quarterback Mike McMahon managed more rushing yards in Detroit’s final drive (17) than Detroit had as a team for the entire game (12).

Now, I’m slow on the uptake, but I’m starting to perceive that there’s a problem here. Plainly, one good cornerback doth not a decent secondary make. We need someone to partner Crane on the opposite side, and we need him roughly now. Trawling though the rosters to find the best, youngest, cheapest 3rd corner I could (I didn’t think it was fair to strip a team of a starter) led me to Denver, and specifically to Willie Middlebrooks, a 2nd year OVR 79 player with 4 years left on his contract at just over a million dollars a season. Bargain! Middlebrooks, like our rookie sensation Jonathon Crane, is a physical corner who’s strong as well as quick – a great fit in a defence that’s likely to leave him unsupported in man-coverage as often as it doesn’t. Denver drove a hard bargain, but in the end agreed to take a 2nd and 3rd round pick along with Artrell Hawkins (CB OVR 62) in exchange for Middlebrooks and their 4th and 5th round draft picks. Ouch. The Broncos were interested in taking our veteran wideout Willie Jackson (OVR 73) in place of our 3rd rounder, but I weighed the options and decided that we’d need Jackson for at least another season...

Middlebrooks, of course, went straight into the lineup for our final preseason game...

 CIN 17-31 NYJ
Game Notable For: 2 50+ yard TD catches for Cincinnati, 1 each for Peter Warrick and Daniel Graham.
Upside: Despite the score, which was more or less purely the result of turnovers, this was easily our best defensive performance against easily the best offence we faced in the pre-season. Plus, if we’re going to lose a game, I’d want it to be in the Meadowlands, sad fanboy that I am. ;)
Downside: Our backups had an absolute mare in the second half, racking up barely 100 total yards with 2 turnovers and 4 sacks of Kitna.
Stat Of The Game: Bengals 0 of 9 on 3rd down. Yikes.

We picked up some nice player-progression to sweeten the pill of getting humped by the Jets, the most notable of these being backup HB Adam Smith grabbing 4 points to reach OVR 71, our starting wideout pairing Peter Warrick and Chad “Butterfingers” Johnson picking up three apiece to go to overall ratings of 86 and 76 respectively and TE Daniel “Wunderkind” Graham getting ANOTHER 5 OVR to get to 86. On defence, the big winner was Jon Crane, whose OVR went up 5 points to an impressive 81. Niiiiiice... And so, because I know you’re gagging for it, the starting lineup of the 2003 Cincinnati Bengals looks like this:

OFFENCE
QB – Akili SMITH (5th year, OVR 73)
HB – Corey DILLON (7th year, OVR 95)
FB – Lorenzo NEAL (11th year, OVR 89)
WR – Peter WARRICK (4th year, OVR 86)
WR – Chad JOHNSON (3rd year, OVR 76)
TE – Daniel GRAHAM (2nd year, OVR 86)
LT – Richmond WEBB (14th year, OVR 76)
LG – Matt O’DWYER (9th year, OVR 74)
C – Roman FORTIN (14th year, OVR 73)
RG – Joe ANDRUZZI (7th year, OVR 75)
RT – Willie ANDERSON (7th year, OVR 84)

DEFENCE (3-4)
RE – Justin SMITH (3rd year, OVR 85)
DT – Sam ADAMS (10th year, OVR 76)
LE – Roderick REED (Rookie, OVR 78)
ROLB – Takeo SPIKES (6th year, OVR 86)
MLB – Brian SIMMONS (6th year, OVR 87)
MLB – Bernardo HARRIS (9th year, OVR 79)
LOLB – Aaron HALL (Rookie, OVR 79)
CB – Jonathon CRANE (Rookie, OVR 81)
CB – Willie MIDDLEBROOKS (3rd year, OVR 80)
FS – Lamont THOMPSON (2nd year, OVR 76)
SS – Aric MORRIS (3rd year, OVR 70)

SPECIAL TEAMS
K – Lawrence STILLS (Rookie, OVR 56)
P – Nick HARRIS (3rd year, OVR 69)
PR – Marquise REEVES (Rookie, OVR 76)
KR – Jon CRANE (Rookie, OVR 94)
KR – Tom LEWIS (Rookie, OVR 91)

Not bad. Not bad at all. The offence is almost unchanged from the one that did so well last season, so I 'm hopeful they'll repeat that success this time out. The defence isn't exactly "shutdown" yet, but it looks a lot stronger than it did, so fingers crossed we might actually, you know, stop somebody a time or two this year... Our kicking game is iffy, but to make up for it we've a terrific set of returners. It'll do...

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(c) daniel roe 2003