MJ injury opens door for Hardison

[BFritz21]

(08-10-2015, 12:36 PM)SHRacerX Wrote: I'm surprised to hear this. 

The Bengals brought back Pat Sims and MJ.  Both are at least what you would call "upper half" of the league in terms of talent. 

They have Geno, Peko, Brandon Thompson, Still, and now Hardison working at DT.  Thompson has been solid, ditto Peko, and both are better when used on a rotational basis.  Still might be what they hoped for years ago when they took him in the second round now that his mind is clear. 

They have Hunt, Clarke, and Gilberry to rotate in behind Dunlap and the aforementioned MJ at DE.  Gilberry has proven to be very effective when used on a rotational basis and Hunt/Clark have flashed in their brief stints on the field.

Aside from the return of the "rotation" (raise your hands if you saw the Dline fading as the season progressed), which is CRITICAL to the team's success, the biggest thing I like about this squad is there is only one rookie.  Geno, Peko, Sims, Dunlap, MJ, Gilberry, and Thompson all have real game experience.  Hunt and Clark are somewhat inexperienced, but they have made it through a season and both have worked tirelessly to improve their strength and conditioning.  Rookies rarely contribute their first season as a DT.  There are exceptions, but I have seen team after team draft a DT early and plug them in only to see them struggle mightily.  I think, aside from QB, that DT might be the toughest transition from college to pro. 

Only Hardison is a rookie, and the Bengals don't need to count on him for really anything this year.  If he gets opportunities and produces, great.  But he is going to be slowly eased in this year. 

I keep forgetting about Sims.

That makes Peko's case even weaker for staying on the team, so cut him and put the money towards AJ.