The dude is just too slow. You could see it in preseason and you can definitely see it now. He has no pull away speed and isn't going to outrun anyone. The punt blocking hasnt been very good, but he has made poor decision after poor decision which is the only thing that made him look good in preseason.

Well one thing the kid has going against him is that every since we lost Peerman (you remember, the guy people on here wanted to cut to keep Carson) has gone down, our ST units blows. Not only are they not opening lanes for the punt returner, their punt coverage has gone to shit as well. Remember the days when we regularly pinned them inside the 15? Losing Peerman as the ST Captain has hurt us every bit as much as losing Eifert.

1. The Bengals didn't release Tate because of fan pressure.

2. Tate while he became reliable towards the end wasn't in any way a return threat - wasn't that good.

3. He didn't suddenly become slow. His speed isn't the problem.

4. Erickson has been very tentative thus far, but we're 6 games in. He looked a little better yesterday. Let's give him a little more time.

(10-17-2016, 08:23 AM)Sled21 Wrote: You're right, it's not rocket science.... You simply do not replace a player until you have someone better to replace him with. I've said this for years in every bash Tate, Maualuga, Dalton thread. It's not like better players are just sitting on the street.....

I do think Tate should've beat out Wright for a roster spot.

It's not like he was terrible or worthless.  He even contributed on offense from time to time.

I just don't see why it's so hard to find a decent replacement though.

They shouldn't have to look "on the street".  Players come out of college and FAs are out there every season.

Tate is not Peerman.  CP's a special teams ace that has unwarranted haters because of his lack of offense contribution.

However both are aging and at some point do need to be replaced.  That's just reality.

This team just needs to judge better for their heir apparent...  apparently.  LOL

(10-17-2016, 08:34 AM)Sled21 Wrote: Well one thing the kid has going against him is that every since we lost Peerman (you remember, the guy people on here wanted to cut to keep Carson) has gone down, our ST units blows. Not only are they not opening lanes for the punt returner, their punt coverage has gone to shit as well. Remember the days when we regularly pinned them inside the 15? Losing Peerman as the ST Captain has hurt us every bit as much as losing Eifert.

Yes agree his presence is missed.

STs has looked weak this year.

BTW...  what the hell is wrong with Huber? 

He ain't doing us any favors either.

(10-17-2016, 08:43 AM)BengalsRocker Wrote: Yes agree his presence is missed.

STs has looked weak this year.

BTW...  what the hell is wrong with Huber? 

He ain't doing us any favors either.

My thoughts on Huber as well.....30 yard punt?

(10-17-2016, 08:47 AM)Wyche Wrote: My thoughts on Huber as well.....30 yard punt?

Shank punt...  with no pressure. 

(10-17-2016, 08:49 AM)BengalsRocker Wrote: Shank punt...  with no pressure. 

.....and ain't been the first one....

(10-17-2016, 07:06 AM)bengaltruth Wrote: It makes sense alright, Mikey boy saves money anywhere he can, no matter the impact on the team.

No it doesn't make sense. Why was Tate on our team for the past 4-5 years? Clearly in your fantasy world Mike the tight wad would just cut our kick returner every year to replace him with a rookie.

Find A. Jones replacement ASAP and demote him to KR/PR.

He pulled one of the most convincing con jobs in NFL history. I look forward to the movie adaptation.

(10-17-2016, 08:49 AM)BengalsRocker Wrote: Shank punt...  with no pressure. 

No pressure is not something he's used to. It screwed with his timing....

Well, Tate haters, what do you say now??

Buffalo is 4-2.

I already said the honeymoon with Erickson is over.

That said, the people pining for Tate are getting silly. Adam Jones can't do anything in returns. Huber is making occasional poor punts because he looks like he is hurrying to get the ball off.

That makes this clear it is not a Tate/Erickson thing. This is a ST thing. The Bengals depth is seriously hurt. Let's look at who was good at ST in the past:

-Peerman, hurt
-Lamur, gone
-Williams, forced into a starting role
-Kirkpatrick, became a starter
-Burkhead, hurt on and off all season
-Backup TEs, forced into a bigger role on offense

Guys who were good ST players, but either hurt, gone, or forced into a role they are not as good at, forcing THEIR backups, who would either not make the team, or be inactive/PS are now the ST guys.

It isn't losing Tate or putting in Erickson, it is the loss of depth causing the talent level of the Bengals ST to plummet.

(10-17-2016, 08:40 AM)BengalsRocker Wrote: I just don't see why it's so hard to find a decent replacement though.

Because like many fans here you do not understand how the NFL works.

Tate was never close to the worst return man in the league.  Yet most fans claimed we could easily replace him.  If it was so easy to replace guys like that then wouldn't EVERY TEAM in the league have s guy better than that?

Same with Nugent and many other players that fans squeal about "Not deserving to be on our roster".  You all need to look around the rest of the league and see how hard it is to replace guys who are just "average starters".

(10-17-2016, 12:07 AM)MentalRage Wrote: Brandon Tate.........oh how we miss you.

(10-17-2016, 12:09 AM)Trademark Wrote: I miss Tate

I don't miss him one bit. He isn't exactly lighting it up in Buffalo. The kicks he returned in yesterdays game, averaged 8 yards. 

Erickson looks like he is afraid of getting hit, especially on PRs. Im not saying he is afraid, but he is just way too timid to make a cut up the field in a hurry where the contact is. I still think they should use Gio back there at times on PR though.

Call me crazy but something tells me Giovani Bernard would be an outstanding kick and punt returner.

Erickson's play has went downhill since the pre-season. Hoping it gets better.

These boards don't know what they want. Tate was arguably the most vilified player on the boards. Now we want him back?