Whitworth-Bengals lowballed

[Whatever]

(12-07-2018, 07:28 PM)Nate (formerly eliminate08) Wrote: One of the biggest blunders by this team and one that pretty much destroyed our last 3 years.

They always talk about the loyalty of Mike Brown but where was the loyalty to one of the best Bengals ever?

This was pathetic honestly, it was the one thing we had to do in that Offseason and we didn't even try.

Makes me mad honestly. Hope Whit gets a ring with the Rams.

It was a bad blunder, but it really hasn't set the franchise back appreciably.  We were a 6 win team in '16 with Whit, a 7 win team in '17, and will probably be a 5-6 win team this year.  It's not like this team was making the playoffs or making a run this year or last with Whit.  We would still need to be looking for his replacement due to his age and Og and Fisher being busts. Honestly, the Og and Fisher picks set us further back than losing Whit.

The Bengals offer was a raise over what he got the previous year.  I don't know a lot of vets getting raises at 34.  I'm not vilifying Whit for taking the Rams offer, but again, loyalty is a two way street.  He could have stayed and he would have still been very well compensated for a player his age at his position.  He made a business decision to maximize his earnings, which is his right.  However, it's not really fair to say one side needs to negotiate based on loyalty while the other side is free to do whatever they feel is in their best interest.