I think most of the fans on here are pretty reasonable. I don't see people screaming for the team to sign the high priced top tier free agents.

That being said, it is extremely deflating when the team does the following:

1. "Goes to war with what we have." Every year since the team got good, we always had a major hole on the team that the team never filled. The last few years it has been C. Instead of signing a vet or even drafting one, we keep with Bodine, before that it was Ghiacec.

2. Pass on guys because they cost too much. I get it, but let's face it, when you are sitting $40 million under the cap to start a season, this can't be an excuse. Last year they let Whit walk out the door over a few million. That pretty much killed our season. Don't tell me you need $5-$10 million for injury cushion every year, because when it comes time to sign a guy because we lost a player due to injury, HE NEVER COSTS ANYWHERE NEAR THAT.

3. Rolling money over for an extension. Here's a great idea - sign the extension now. What's the point of waiting until next year when we have Dunlap and Atkins up? Use that money now. Everyone is sick of this excuse because every year $10-15 million gets rolled over.

Sorry for the rant, but free agency always pisses me off because if we just went out and spent a little money, we could shore this team up pretty quick, but it never happens.

We need a damn lineman. We better have one in mind..we need to at least get an OT and is say a center too..thats it ..thats all I ask.

(03-11-2018, 03:01 PM)McC Wrote: But Paul stopped his innovation short of free agency, a thing he hated, and that is where Mike took over, hence, the problem.  And when he was somehow convinced to go bigger in FA, he got burned.

Paul would have figured out how to turn free agency to his advantage, because that is how he thought.

(03-11-2018, 11:33 PM)BengalChris Wrote: Paul would have figured out how to turn free agency to his advantage, because that is how he thought.

My thoughts as well. Paul was a very stubborn man, but he was so innovative for the sport. He would've found a way to adjust to free agency and use it to his advantage.

(03-11-2018, 08:08 PM)Hammerstripes Wrote:  Don't tell me you need $5-$10 million for injury cushion every year, because when it comes time to sign a guy because we lost a player due to injury, HE NEVER COSTS ANYWHERE NEAR THAT.

But all of those smaller replacement contracts add up.  Last year we ended the season with 13 players on IR.

(03-11-2018, 08:08 PM)Hammerstripes Wrote: Here's a great idea - sign the extension now.  What's the point of waiting until next year when we have Dunlap and Atkins up?  Use that money now.  Everyone is sick of this excuse because every year $10-15 million gets rolled over.

This is exactly what we do almost every year.  Right before training camp we will announce that we have negotiated a contract extension for Atkins, Dunlap, or maybe even both.

(03-12-2018, 11:38 AM)fredtoast Wrote: But all of those smaller replacement contracts add up.  Last year we ended the season with 13 players on IR.

Yet we signed Winston..... And no he didn't cost 10M.

I'm disappointed Fred. Even for your spin. But let's play. Who was the 13 smaller replacement contracts we signed?

As a lawyer, why open yourself up to this credibility check?

(03-12-2018, 11:38 AM)fredtoast Wrote: But all of those smaller replacement contracts add up.  Last year we ended the season with 13 players on IR.





This is exactly what we do almost every year.  Right before training camp we will announce that we have negotiated a contract extension for Atkins, Dunlap, or maybe even both.

Fred, I hope the team does do this, but there is no certainty that they will. Atkins will be 31 when the 2019 season starts and Dunlap 30.

How willing is Mikey Brown to extending two guys to the age of 34 or 35 for big money?

I can see Mikey Brown pissing one of them off with a low-ball offer or just plain backing out if one of them wants more than he has calculated in his budget. We've been loading up on DTs and DEs the last two years and we could draft more this year.

Then there is Dennard, who is young and good. I believe the team will also try to extend Dennard and if they do that will likely mean that either Atkins or Dunlap will not be extended. I just don't see them extending 3 players in one year.

Mikey Brown has a knack for just turning a player sour on the team.

(03-12-2018, 02:11 PM)BengalChris Wrote: Fred, I hope the team does do this, but there is no certainty that they will. Atkins will be 31 when the 2019 season starts and Dunlap 30.

How willing is Mikey Brown to extending two guys to the age of 34 or 35 for big money?

I can see Mikey Brown pissing one of them off with a low-ball offer or just plain backing out if one of them wants more than he has calculated in his budget. We've been loading up on DTs and DEs the last two years and we could draft more this year.

Then there is Dennard, who is young and good. I believe the team will also try to extend Dennard and if they do that will likely mean that either Atkins or Dunlap will not be extended. I just don't see them extending 3 players in one year.

Mikey Brown has a knack for just turning a player sour on the team.

Forgot about Dennard.

And I am predicting that we will extend the contract of one of our m,ain players that is due to become a free agent after next season.  I can't "guarantee" anything but if it does not happen I will admit I was wrong instead of not being man enough to own my prediction.

(03-12-2018, 12:14 PM)jj22 Wrote: Yet we signed Winston..... And no he didn't cost 10M.

I'm disappointed Fred. Even for your spin. But let's play. Who was the 13 smaller replacement contracts we signed?

As a lawyer, why open yourself up to this credibility check?

Hammerstripes claimed we did not even need $5 million as an injury replacement fund.

(03-11-2018, 11:33 PM)BengalChris Wrote: Paul would have figured out how to turn free agency to his advantage, because that is how he thought.

I'm not so sure about that.  He is the one who appointed his idiot son to run the show.  He is the one who made it a family business.  He picked Tiger Johnson over Bill Walsh.   Paul's last years were far from his best.  He got old and stuck in a time warp like most people do.  This is the exact reason why many old guys outlive their genius.

(03-12-2018, 12:14 PM)jj22 Wrote: Yet we signed Winston..... And no he didn't cost 10M.

I'm disappointed Fred. Even for your spin. But let's play. Who was the 13 smaller replacement contracts we signed?

As a lawyer, why open yourself up to this credibility check?

I was reading that even the rookie minimum for the 2017 season , was $465,000.  So, even if they replaced those guys with 13 rookies off the street, it would have cost 5.85M.  We know that they did not sign all rookies.  In the case of Winston, a vet with 10 or more years of service, his minimum would have been 1M.

(03-12-2018, 02:32 PM)fredtoast Wrote: Forgot about Dennard.

And I am predicting that we will extend the contract of one of our m,ain players that is due to become a free agent after next season.  I can't "guarantee" anything but if it does not happen I will admit I was wrong instead of not being man enough to own my prediction.

There are no guarantees with Mikey Brown. Who knows what goes on in that head.

I personally would try to get all three done. But I remember the team selecting Williams (for more money) over Nelson (who led the league in INTs and took less in Oakland). Same last year with Kirkpatrick over betters players on the OL. Granted those players had already reached free agency, but the team made little effort to extend Zietler when he could have been gotten for a little less money than DeCastro took.

I also know that Mikey Brown covets comp picks and Atkins will surely bring an end of the 3rd round pick. Just think of the savings?

If I'm wrong, I'm wrong. I just wouldn't put it past our self appointed GM.

(03-12-2018, 02:48 PM)McC Wrote: I'm not so sure about that.  He is the one who appointed his idiot son to run the show.  He is the one who made it a family business.  He picked Tiger Johnson over Bill Walsh.   Paul's last years were far from his best.  He got old and stuck in a time warp like most people do.  This is the exact reason why many old guys outlive their genius.

His idiot son inherited the team and appointed himself as GM and, despite huge public demand for a real GM, Mikey Brown still sits there with the final word on just about everything.

Also, if Paul had seen just how horrid his son has done with the team, he would have fired him a long time ago. That is something I have no doubt about at all.

(03-13-2018, 01:34 PM)BengalChris Wrote: but the team made little effort to extend Zietler when he could have been gotten for a little less money than DeCastro took.

Zeitler got ten million MORE than DeCastro.  What makes you think he would have taken less to remain a Bengal?

(03-13-2018, 01:51 PM)fredtoast Wrote: Zeitler got ten million MORE than DeCastro.  What makes you think he would have taken less to remain a Bengal?

DeCastro set the market value the year before and both were drafted in the same year. I am certain that Zietler would have taken the same deal or a slightly smaller one if it had been offered right after DeCastro signed his. Remember it was the same off-season.

Instead, the Bengals would not offer that much and Zietler went on hit the open market the next year. That's when he signed for $10M more.

(03-13-2018, 01:59 PM)BengalChris Wrote: DeCastro set the market value the year before and both were drafted in the same year. I am certain that Zietler would have taken the same deal or a slightly smaller one if it had been offered right after DeCastro signed his. Remember it was the same off-season.

Instead, the Bengals would not offer that much and Zietler went on hit the open market the next year. That's when he signed for $10M more.

You have no clue what Zeitler would have done.

According to some people Bengal players are desperate to escape from the worst franchise in the league.

(03-13-2018, 01:39 PM)BengalChris Wrote: His idiot son inherited the team and appointed himself as GM and, despite huge public demand for a real GM, Mikey Brown still sits there with the final word on just about everything.

Also, if Paul had seen just how horrid his son has done with the team, he would have fired him a long time ago. That is something I have no doubt about at all.

Mike was Paul's hand picked successor.  He was already in the job before Paul died.  Paul deserves all the credit he gets for his glory days.  But there was nothing glorious about his last years here.  He was the guy who the game had passed by and Mike operates in the same PB giant ego way.

And you really have no way of knowing what Paul would do, so your last statement is pure conjecture and nothing more.

(03-13-2018, 02:04 PM)fredtoast Wrote: You have no clue what Zeitler would have done.

According to some people Bengal players are desperate to escape from the worst franchise in the league.

You could be right, but I do know that the team was in negotiation with Zeitler about an extension.

He went to the Browns, which is an even worse franchise presently.

(03-13-2018, 02:10 PM)McC Wrote: Mike was Paul's hand picked successor.  He was already in the job before Paul died.  Paul deserves all the credit he gets for his glory days.  But there was nothing glorious about his last years here.  He was the guy who the game had passed by and Mike operates in the same PB giant ego way.

And you really have no way of knowing what Paul would do, so your last statement is pure conjecture and nothing more.

True, but I also know that Paul had a fire to win, something his son never had.