(01-18-2020, 08:09 PM)Murdock2420 Wrote: I can see Mike keeping Andy on the roster since no one is going to offer the type of compensation he thinks Andy is worth.

Just my opinion, but I don't think Andy will be a Bengal next year for a couple of reasons:

1) Andy has been a very good company man. Mike thanked him at the end of season for what he's done for the organization. I think they'll take the best deal they can get and allow Andy the opportunity to compete for a starting job elsewhere.

2) Drafting Burrow and keeping Andy only serves to create tension that doesn't need to be there. Andy will not be happy being forced to stay on the team and being relegated to backup, as we saw after he was benched for Finley.

(01-18-2020, 04:30 PM)Murdock2420 Wrote: The free agency is the real telling moment, if the Bengals get active in free agency and try to actually improve the roster prior to the draft then this is a real effort and the Burrow pick is less of a concern.

If they are going to just extend their own and sit on their hands, then the Burrow pick will be a waste and we get to relive the 90's.

I wouldn't say that.  It's not like we went big into free agency when we drafted Palmer or Dalton and they turned out just fine.

I'm not a fan of overpaying players, and the guys that hit free agency always seem to get a huge premium over their true value.

That being said, I would think that they should go out and sign one top tier guy at a glaring position of need (IOL or LB)

(01-18-2020, 09:35 PM)BengalsFan1986 Wrote: Burrow wore #10 in high school and at Ohio State. Not sure what the change was at LSU but we might all want to pump the breaks on the #9 jerseys for now.

Joe Burrow is a HUGE Drew Brees fan. That's why he wore #9 at LSU... 

(01-18-2020, 10:21 PM)Bengalholic Wrote: Just my opinion, but I don't think Andy will be a Bengal next year for a couple of reasons:

1) Andy has been a very good company man. Mike thanked him at the end of season for what he's done for the organization. I think they'll take the best deal they can get and allow Andy the opportunity to compete for a starting job elsewhere.

2) Drafting Burrow and keeping Andy only serves to create tension that doesn't need to be there. Andy will not be happy being forced to stay on the team and being relegated to backup, as we saw after he was benched for Finley.

Agree

And I doubt Mike is gonna pay AD 17 million to ride the pine. 

Would think selling the most jersey's and seats possible would walk hand in hand with winning.

Not sure FO sees it this way though. Do not think they purposely hamstring team and do try, but just are unwilling to do anything extra to put Bengals over the top.

I don't see us signing any O-Line men in free agency since Zac mentioned in a recent interview that he thought there was lot of growth there in the back half of the season and that he felt like we are getting 2 1st round picks with Jonah coming back
We could make a few moves at Corner as Dennard is free which would only leave us with Dre and Jackson who is going into his contract year.
We also need to go big on LB's in FA and the Draft as well as an O-line guy in the draft

Mike Brown and winning should not be spoken in the same sentence. He is about earning an annual income, plain and simple. There is zero evidence he cares about winning or will do the things needed to do to win - and he is well aware what those things are.

(01-19-2020, 02:24 AM)JSR18 Wrote: Joe Burrow is a HUGE Drew Brees fan. That's why he wore #9 at LSU... 

I didn’t know that. Good to know though. Guess we’ll have to wait and see which way he goes. Will he stick with #10 in Ohio or bring #9 back with him. I’m really hoping that’s the most suspense we experience on draft day.

(01-19-2020, 02:55 PM)BengalsFan1986 Wrote: I didn’t know that. Good to know though. Guess we’ll have to wait and see which way he goes. Will he stick with #10 in Ohio or bring #9 back with him. I’m really hoping that’s the most suspense we experience on draft day.

Me too, brother... 

(01-18-2020, 04:14 PM)Fan_in_Kettering Wrote: So, Bengaldom, which is it?

Is this offseason about putting butts in seats and selling jerseys or is it about winning?

I’m all for drafting Joe Burrow #1OA.  That’s no longer up for debate unless Mike Brown is offered a one-sided deal not even any of us would refuse.  I give it 95% probability Joe Burrow will be inking his rookie deal with the Bengals in a few short months.

With Joe Burrow in the fold as of the evening of 23 April, let’s rewind to March 2020 when free agency opens.  This is the first indicator of which way the “butts in seats and jerseys vs. winning” debate will turn.  The Cincinnati Bengals have usually slept through free agency, sometimes “kicking the tires” on a player or two, signing one here and there, but pretty much laying low while all the good teams make big moves.

Mike Brown doesn’t like free agency and he’s gone on the record saying so.  However, this holds back the team’s overall progress.  Free agency, whether we like it or not, is a fact of life.  Along with drafts and trading, free agency is a viable way to build a competitive team.  The best teams use all three ways but the Bengals prefer to focus on the draft alone.

If the Bengals want to win they must be aggressive in free agency.  If they are not I’ll be very concerned until the 33d pick in the draft comes up.  If. I hear Roger Goodell announce the Bengals’ pick as an NFL-ready linebacker or offensive lineman, it will give me hope the Front Office wants to win.  If the 33d pick, and those after it, turn out to be a bunch of Drew Sample-like head scratchers I’ll know only butts in the seats and jersey sales are important.

Joe Burrow has the potential to be a very good NFL quarterback but he will  need a solid team around him to become a star.  I do not want him to become Archie Manning 2.0 who was an outstanding player surrounded by a team of drones led by awful coaches.  A player like Joe only comes along on rare occasion so let’s hope the Front Office prioritizes winning over selling seats and jerseys.

Besides, winning creates the demand for tickets and jerseys in and of itself.

If the Bengals sign Whit to play LG (2 year deal, club option for 3rd year), Thuney to play RG, Littleton to play LB, especially in nickel, and then go in to the draft (after Burrow) with sights set on a stud WR, RT, and depth at DE/DT, I would buy my season tickets back.  

Anything less, I will just be watching from home.  And that is fine.  But they need to know, Burrow alone will not change the team, nor will it change attendance.