(03-24-2021, 01:36 AM)Joelist Wrote: Except our hopes haven't been crushed this time. 

Bengals improved at RT. For just 1 year.

Where else have they notably improved on their roster from this time last year? Going into FA with the 4th-5th most cap space and improving on just 1 position on a 1 year deal for your whole team while completely neglecting IOL improvement is pretty much hope crushing.

(03-24-2021, 01:36 AM)Joelist Wrote: Except our hopes haven't been crushed this time. 

He meant crushed like;

Damn we really crushed it this free agency.

(03-24-2021, 01:35 AM)Joelist Wrote: Part of why I distrust PFF - I watched the games and my eyes tell me something different than those numbers. 

A lot of people say that...until you go back and watch the games again with a closer eye. Fans remember the really good or the really bad and use that to judge a player on a game. PFF watches ever single play, with multiple eyes and grade them more objectively and not as a fan. 

I'm not 100% on board with their grades...but it's better than having to read about how Billy Price had a really good game or player X had a really good game and then you go back to watch and people seem to forget, or just don't remember seeing a guy get blown off his block multiple times while not getting a QB or RB blown up. 

There's typically around 67 plays a game and the average fan doesn't remember about 85% of them for any given player. 

(03-24-2021, 01:42 AM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: Bengals improved at RT. For just 1 year.

Where else have they notably improved on their roster from this time last year? Going into FA with the 4th-5th most cap space and improving on just 1 position on a 1 year deal for your whole team while completely neglecting IOL improvement is pretty much hope crushing.

Every year is a new year. We had a bunch of cap space because contracts were ending and those players were no longer on the roster. We lost one of the highest paid WRs in the league who was not even close to worth it for the price. A disgruntled DE who was expensive. An injured aging undersized phenom DT who was expensive. A 5th year rookie contract option 10mil CB who landed the biggest CB payday this free agency.

Yea we didn't get Thuney and we didn't keep Lawson who looks really promising. But man. This is really obvious stuff a lot of you are just totally disregarding.

(03-24-2021, 01:32 AM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: I never said they can't talk about them, I just said this is an annual tradition. We get our hopes up for FA, those hopes are crushed, and then we move on to hyping up fringe roster guys as potential solutions.

Haha if your hopes are crushed in the past couple of years then you must have taken a decade to crawl out from under your rock before that. 

I guess whingers gotta whinge. 

(03-23-2021, 09:49 PM)CarolinaBengalFanGuy Wrote: Who was stretching the field and was a good TE last year? It definitely wasn’t AJ Green.

I’m glad we brought Spain back. Don’t mind him starting at a G spot but the biggest reason I wanted him back is he can play pretty much every spot on the line. I’m curious if he might possibly play C to start the year.

To be honest, nobody was stretching the field because Burrow had poor accuracy on the deep ball. AJ's catch percentage was very low because he just didn't look the same but another part of it was because of Burrow's mis-fires on the deep ball.

I know that that's going to ruffle a few feathers but it's true.

(03-23-2021, 09:49 PM)CarolinaBengalFanGuy Wrote: Who was stretching the field and was a good TE last year? It definitely wasn’t AJ Green.

I’m glad we brought Spain back. Don’t mind him starting at a G spot but the biggest reason I wanted him back is he can play pretty much every spot on the line. I’m curious if he might possibly play C to start the year.

Nope, Spain has said he can play any position EXCEPT Center.

(03-24-2021, 08:58 AM)Forever Spinning Vinyl Wrote: To be honest, nobody was stretching the field because Burrow had poor accuracy on the deep ball. AJ's catch percentage was very low because he just didn't look the same but another part of it was because of Burrow's mis-fires on the deep ball.

I know that that's going to ruffle a few feathers but it's true.

AJ's catch percentage was simply because he was awful. He was literally one of the worst receivers in the league in terms of snaps/expected production based on target share and actual production. 

Burrow missed on deep balls, but AJ was horrible all over the field.

(03-24-2021, 08:58 AM)Forever Spinning Vinyl Wrote: To be honest, nobody was stretching the field because Burrow had poor accuracy on the deep ball. AJ's catch percentage was very low because he just didn't look the same but another part of it was because of Burrow's mis-fires on the deep ball.

I know that that's going to ruffle a few feathers but it's true.

I’d be interested to see deep ball % targeting Green vs the other WR.

(03-24-2021, 12:54 AM)rfaulk34 Wrote: That hasn't proven to be true though. Boyd is an excellent route runner and Higgins was a rookie and played very well. 

I fully agree with you on them being great wide receivers.  What happens when you have a great DB backfield though.  They can take those players out of the game.  You have to have more than 2 weapons on offense.  

I mean look back at probably our most successful season of I think it was 2013-14 time frame and you had AJ, Sanu, Marvin Jones, Tyler Eiffert, (looking back on that 2014 roster and I had forgotten how much talent was on that team). 

That offense was humming until Dalton went down with that thumb injury and McCarron had to play in the playoffs.

That's why i said you need to give Burrow weapons.  Yea Burrows a much better QB than Dalton but the more weapons you provide the more lethal that offense can be. 

(03-23-2021, 10:19 PM)Frank Booth Wrote: I would have zero issue with using a 2nd or 3rd round pick on a Center. 

We already know Billy Price is bad, and Hopkins at best was an average center. Now he's older and coming off a knee injury

Center might be the move instead of guard

There really is not a C in this draft class I would want that I think can be better than Hopkins except maybe Humphrey. In which case, he'll need to be taken in 2nd round. But even then, I'm not confident he's gonna be a great fit in a wide zone scheme.

(03-23-2021, 09:58 PM)Nate (formerly eliminate08) Wrote: Yes, lots of guys are underrating him just cause of last season where he was thrown into the fire.

I am not. I know we shouldn't look at him as the sure starter but if we Drafted a top Guard in the 2nd and Spain beats him out it 
wouldn't honestly surprise me. Especially with a full Offseason and Pollack now the OL coach.

The plan should be for XSF and Spain to compete for one OG spot, and have a new guy (FA or early draft pick) take the other.

(03-24-2021, 11:51 AM)ochocincos Wrote: The plan should be for XSF and Spain to compete for one OG spot, and have a new guy (FA or early draft pick) take the other.

Only if the new guy is better. Best 5 is the plan.

(03-24-2021, 11:52 AM)Sled21 Wrote: Only if the new guy is better. Best 5 is the plan.

Well, yes. I am assuming/hoping that the new guy is better than either Spain or XSF. If not, that would be cause for worry.

(03-24-2021, 01:32 AM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: I never said they can't talk about them, I just said this is an annual tradition. We get our hopes up for FA, those hopes are crushed, and then we move on to hyping up fringe roster guys as potential solutions.

To be fair im not big on Trai like most,  I was ok with Spain and whoever we get from the draft at OG so my plan is still in place. And I was always was high on Hakeem. 

Johnson and Jordan are trash tho. 

(03-24-2021, 09:22 AM)TJ528 Wrote: I fully agree with you on them being great wide receivers.  What happens when you have a great DB backfield though.  They can take those players out of the game.  You have to have more than 2 weapons on offense.  

I mean look back at probably our most successful season of I think it was 2013-14 time frame and you had AJ, Sanu, Marvin Jones, Tyler Eiffert, (looking back on that 2014 roster and I had forgotten how much talent was on that team). 

That offense was humming until Dalton went down with that thumb injury and McCarron had to play in the playoffs.

That's why i said you need to give Burrow weapons.  Yea Burrows a much better QB than Dalton but the more weapons you provide the more lethal that offense can be. 

They def need more than 2 good WRs, a TE and a RB catching passes out of the backfield. They have two really good WRs and i think they go after another in rd2. Mike Thomas isn't great but with other weapons on the field, i think he can be effective. Uzomah showed some potential before his injury last year and it wouldn't hurt to try and find someone with potential in rd4-7. They have at least a couple RBs that are good too, so, i agree they need to surround Burrow with as much as they can but i don't think the cupboard is bare. 

(03-24-2021, 11:23 AM)ochocincos Wrote: There really is not a C in this draft class I would want that I think can be better than Hopkins except maybe Humphrey. In which case, he'll need to be taken in 2nd round. But even then, I'm not confident he's gonna be a great fit in a wide zone scheme.

He wouldn't have any issues.

Glad to see Spain resigned. But in no means should this deter them from drafting Sewell and/or getting more help for what's widely known as the weakest link.

(03-23-2021, 03:57 PM)Truck_1_0_1_ Wrote: Bingo.

Spain will be the starter, I feel and a draft pick will be at RG.

Regardless of what we do at 5, I'm calling it now that at 38, we'll take Meinerz.

I'm all about Meinerz.   I hope they don't try to wait till 3.    I really want this guy.

Going to be an interesting draft.  There are a lot of interesting people to look at from the 3rd round on both sides of the ball.   Just hope they get a stud at 5.

(03-23-2021, 04:39 PM)Sled21 Wrote: Give Spain and XFS a full gamut of OTA's, Training Camp, and pre-season under Pollack and I bet we are pretty happy with them. Not to say I don't want more guards signed, but now it is not an emergency. Get what we can get in the draft.

We missed the boat with Zeitler I believe.  Interesting article (don't know where I read it) that had Paul Alexander saying that at this point (Thuney, Zeitler, et al being gone) there was really no one worth signing in free agency, that teams would be better off drafting one.

Like the Spain signing.  If they keep him in one spot with XFS steadily in the other, we should have a net improvement.  Then draft their replacements to truly upgrade.  Some of the interior linemen in the 2nd/ 3rd round neighborhood (Meinerz and Dickerson come to mind) have strong ability to play center as well.  If we can snag Spencer Brown in the 3rd or 4th (not likely) we'd suddenly have some excellent depth across the OL.

I'll be intrigued to see how they draft.