Currently the Bengals have 75 players on their roster and must get it down to 53 by this Saturday at 4 p.m.
The biggest thing to watch is the battle in the secondary. Currently I feel that there are only five locks at a spot where the Bengals may keep 10 or 11 players on their roster.
Some might argue that CB Keiwan Ratliff is a lock, but a local paper, Cincinnati Enquirer, rumored that rookie free-agent T.J. Wright has beaten Ratliff out of a job.
Also, fourth-round pick Marvin White should make the roster, but I don’t like the idea that someone should just be given a roster spot. White still needs to do more, he had an INT against Detroit, but besides that he hasn’t done anything special.
QBs (3): The Bengals are set at this position. Locks:Carson Palmer, Doug Johnson and Jeff Rowe RBs (4 or 5): Could keep four or five depending on the health of Chris Perry. Locks: Rudi Johnson, (FB) Jeremi Johnson and Kenny Watson. On bubble: Quincy Wilson, (FB) Chris Manderino and Curtis Brown (should be on practice squad) WRs (6): I’m listing Skyler Green as a lock just because he deserves it. Locks: Chad Johnson, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Tab Perry, Green. On bubble: Glenn Holt, Antonio Chatman, Bennie Brazell, Reggie McNeal and Jesse Holley (should be on practice squad). TEs (2): Might want to search the waiver wire for more help. Locks: Reggie Kelly and Daniel Coats. On bubble: Nate Lawrie (I don’t think Tim Day is close to being ready) OL (9 or 10): Locks C Eric Ghiaciuc, OT Willie Anderson, OT Levi Jones, OG Bobbie Williams, OG Stacy Andrews and OT/OG Andrew Whitworth On bubble: OT Scott “The Polar Bear” Kooistra, C Alex Stepanovich, C/OG Dan Santucci, OG Nate Livings, OG Harrison Nikolao, OT Alan Reuber and OT Dane Uperesa. DL (9): I think DT Kendrick Allen made this team with his great play in the preseason, but the Bengals could go with sixth-round pick Matt Toeaina. Locks: DE Robert Geathers, DE Justin Smith, DT Domata Peko, DT John Thornton, DE/DT Bryan Robinson and DT Michael Myers. On bubble: DE/DT Jonathan Fanene, DT Allen, DE Frostee Rucker, DT Toeaina and DE Xzavie Jackson. LBs (6 or 7):Locks OLB Landon Johnson, MLB Ahmad Brooks, OLB Caleb Miller, OLB Rashad Jeanty, Lemar Marshall, Ed Hartwell On bubble: Andre Frazier, Earl Everett and Matt Muncy. DBs (10):Locks CB Johnathan Joseph, CB Deltha O’Neal, S Madieu Williams, S Dexter Jackson and CB Leon Hall. On bubble: CB Keiwan Ratliff, CB Blue Adams, CB/S Ethan Kilmer, CB Brandon Williams, CB T.J. Wright, S Herana-Daze Jones, S John Busing, S Chinedum Ndukwe and S Marvin White. Special Teams (3): K Shayne Graham, P Kyle Larson and LS Brad St. Louis. (You have to imagine K Aaron Elling will be let go)
The Bengals cut their roster down from 79 to 74 on Tuesday. A couple of those moves involved certain players being placed on certain injury lists. For example, offensive tackle Adam Kieft was placed on the season-ending injured reserve, linebacker David Pollack was placed on the physically unable to perform list (PUP) and defensive end Jimmy Verdon was placed on the all to common season-ending non-football injury-Europe list. Also, Cincinnati waived two college free agents, wide receiver Tony Kays of California-Davis and fullback Stan White of Ohio State.
However, the biggest move is the one that wasn’t made (sorry, that is such a terrible sports’ cliché)- running back Chris Perry is still on the active roster.
Many Bengals’ fans were puzzled when the team selected Auburn’s Kenny Irons in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft. Soon after, the local media beat into everyone’s heads that the former first-round pick Perry (left) would start the season on the PUP, which means he would miss the first six weeks of the season.
Then Irons was injured on his fourth-career preseason carry in Detroit. At the time, there was no word on Perry. All the talk was how a player (Irons) that has never seen the field in the regular season for Cincinnati was going to destroy this team’s running game.
However, all of sudden, by the sheer grace of the Bengals’ gods themselves, Chris Perry might be able to begin the season on the 53-man roster. Which will be determined this Saturday at 4 p.m. If the Bengals dress Perry and practice him this week, they won’t be able to put him on the PUP. However, the Bengals are allowed to work him out in order to make their decision.
“He’s made good progress; he’s worked hard,” Lewis told Bengals.com. “He had a great workout yesterday. He came in this morning and he wasn’t as sore. But that’s not football. He’s got to keep pushing and going. We’ll ramp him back up and keep going and keep evaluating.”
Perry didn’t play much in ‘06, but played in 14 games in ‘05 and had an impressive 51 receptions.
Other Injury News
Bengals signed kicker Aaron Elling to handle the kicking duties in Friday night’s preseason game. Graham has a bruise on his right hip. I bet if this was a regular season game, Graham would be able to take a few Advil caplets and be ready to go.
Cornerback Johnathan Joseph isn’t going to practice or play this week. His foot is in a boot again and claims that is only in there for resting purposes. That still worries me a little.
Offensive tackle Willie Anderson will finally practice for the first time this week, but probably won’t play on Friday.
Linebacker Rashad Jeanty just had surgery on his leg. He won’t play in the preseason finale and might be questionable for the opener.
Defensive back Ethan Kilmer and wide receiver Antonio Chatman are expected to be placed on the PUP list this Saturday.
Safety Dexter Jackson (right) is expected to sit out on Friday after suffering a concussion when Atlanta Falcon tight end Alge Crumpler ran him over on Monday night.
Defensive end Frostee Rucker and wide receiver Bennie Brazell are battling nagging injuries and are questionable for Friday’s game.
Also, according to a Alex Marvez of Foxsports.com Rucker will be suspended for the regular season opener against Baltimore.
According to the article the suspension stems from- “Rucker pleaded guilty in May to one count of false imprisonment and one count of vandalism stemming from a June 2006 incident with an ex-girlfriend. Rucker, who had a charge of spousal battery against him dropped as part of a plea deal, was sentenced to 36 months probation. Rucker told FOXSports.com on Wednesday that he has appealed the suspension.”
The Cincinnati Bengals waived two college free agents, wide receiver Tony Kays of California-Davis and fullback Stan White of Ohio State, in order to get below the maximum 75 allowed on the roster.
The big cut down day will be this Saturday. Cincinnati will have to trim their roster to 53 active players. So, Friday’s game will be a last chance for many of these players to make this team. Don’t expect the starters to play, but if you are true Bengals’ fan then you interest should be there on Friday.
On another note, quarterback Carson Palmer was elected by his teammates as the offensive captain. On the other side of the ball, defensive tackle John Thornton was elected captain.
Something that is familiar with other sports, both Thornton and Palmer will wear the league’s captains’ patches on their game jerseys. This is a new thing in the NFL and was commissioner Roger Goodell’s idea.
The Bengals current roster is at 74. Corresponding moves include putting offensive tackle Adam Kieft on the season-ending injured reserve for the second time in three years.
Also, linebacker David Pollack was placed on physically unable to perform list (PUP) and defensive end Jimmy Verdon was placed on the season-ending Non-Football Injury-Europe list.
ESPN couldn’t stop talking about it and they aren’t going to stop talking about. Michael Vick is going to jail, whoop-de-freakin’-doo!
I don’t care about that. What I cared about was the Cincinnati Bengals (0-3) 19-24 loss to the Atlanta Falcons (2-1).
Many Bengal fans can’t be happy from the ‘dress rehearsal’ on Monday night. The ‘dress rehearsal’ is otherwise known as the third preseason game.
Carson Palmer, Chad Johnson, Rudi Johnson, T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Johnathan Joseph played the entire first half.
For the third straight week the Bengals lost and didn’t look ready for the regular season. With the next game scheduled for Friday and no starters expected to play, you have to be a little worried if you are a Bengals’ fan.
Sadly, the only player who consistently played well this preseason was wide receiver Chris Henry. Again sadly, Henry won’t be able to play for the first eight games of the season.
I know it is Cincinnati and with our past history of poor play, we love to rip the Bengals, however let’s focus on the positives.
Quarterback Carson Palmer looked sharp completing 15 of 22 passes for 136 yards and threw two touchdowns. Prior to the game, the Bengals’ first-team offense hadn’t scored a touchdown. Also, wide receiver Chad Johnson was on his game. Johnson made one of league’s best cornerbacks, DeAngelo Hall, look like a rookie. Ocho Cinco finished with five catches for 83 yards and caught a touchdown. Running back Rudi Johnson had some solid numbers, he rushed for 69 yards on 13 carries. Defensive tackle Kenderick Allen recorded five tackles, which is impressive for a 350-pounder (listed at 330, but I don’t buy it). Defensive tackle John Thornton had two sacks and the defense held the Falcons to 15 yards on nine carries in the first half. Last year, Atlanta led the entire NFL in rushing.
Wow, that doesn’t sound that bad, maybe Cincinnati is ready to make their run to the playoffs in 2007.
Wait, here are the negatives. The Bengals’ first-team defense may have stopped the run, but they made quarterback Joey Harrington look more like Joe Montana. Harrington completed 13 of 21 passes for 164 yards and threw two touchdowns. T.J. Houshmandzadeh caught four passes for 25 yards, but dropped a bunch of passes and looked out of place on multiple occasions. Everyone’s favorite seventh-round pick ‘Nedu’ Ndukwe didn’t look good. Ndukwe was responsible for allowing the Falcons’ first two touchdowns. Wide receiver Adam Jennings blew by Ndukwe for a 28-yard score, then running back Jerious Norwood broke an arm tackle by Ndukwe on his way into the end zone. Ndukwe played with the first-team defense when Dexter Jackson got banged up when he was run over by Falcon tight end Alge Crumpler. Cornerback Keiwan Ratliff had a bunch of tackles, but that was because he played receivers softer than a piece of fresh wonder bread. Offensive tackle Scott Kooistra (above) looked like a polar bear walking backwards on stilts. Levi Jones looked even worse. Even the Bengals’ kicker, Shayne Graham, was injured in the game.
The Bengals are not ready for the regular season, but ready or not here it comes.
Oh, wait I want to remind you to take a deep breath and tell yourself that this is the preseason. NONE OF THIS MATTERS. IT ISN’T REAL.
More on this game and Fridays game coverage coming soon. Also, the Bengals need to cut down to 75 players on Tuesday, then down to 53 players this Saturday. Not counting the significant injuries, the Bengals currently have 79 players on their active roster.
Both the Bengals and Falcons need to have good games
Obviously, you will hear Michael Vick’s name not once, not twice but at least a thousand times when you tune into tonight’s Monday Night Football game.
However, this is Bengalstripes.com not ESPN.com, so that is all I’m going to mention about the dirty birds in this game preview.
Through Cincinnati’s first two preseason games, the first-team offense hasn’t scored a touchdown. Against the Lions, quarterback Carson Palmer led the offense on two solid drives (in two first-team drives total) that ended in field goals. Then last weekend, Palmer and his first-team offense had four drives and ended with only one score, which was 51-yard field goal.
Much of the play calling on offense has been very conservative to say the least. On the lone first-team offensive scoring drive (51-yard FG), the Bengals called a quick wide receiver screen on third and 11. The play wasn’t designed to get the first down. The reason it was called, was to get the ball into Tab Perry’s hands.
Speaking of play calling, head coach Marvin Lewis will coach from the Atlanta press box as he recovers from Wednesday’s ankle surgery.
Cornerback Johnathan Joseph dressed for the game against New Orleans, but didn’t play. If Joseph plays, which I expect him to, he will definitely be one to watch since he is expected to be the Bengals’ top corner this season.
On June 2nd, during the Bengals’ mandatory mincamp, Joseph fractured a bone in his left foot.
I expect Safety Herana-Daze Jones (who was great against the Saints), defensive end Robert Geathers, linebacker Earl Everett and wide receiver Glenn Holt not to play due to injuries.
Not counting injuries, the Bengals have 79 players on their roster. They must cut their roster down to 75 by 4 p.m. Tuesday. Then Cincinnati must trim their roster to 53 players by 4 p.m. on Saturday.
The Cincinnati Enquirer wrote that college free-agent T.J. Wright (Ohio University) might have beat out Keiwan Ratliff for one of the last cornerback positions. I wouldn’t be surprised to see wide receiver Tony Kays let go on Tuesday.
Keep a close eye on these players:
1) OT Levi Jones: Jones might not play. However, it sounds like he will play with the second-team offense. It will be interesting to see him play. Jones might be in knee braces (not one, but two) all season, which might hurt his normally stellar play. 2) WR Tab Perry: Perry is one of the most important players on the roster with Chris Henry to miss the first half of the season. Perry practically missed the entire 2006 season when he was injured late in the second game of the year. Supposedly Perry is stronger, faster and has better hands than Henry. Perry looked terrible in the Saints preseason game, none of his quarterbacks seemed to know where to throw it to him. Five of six of Carson Palmer’s incompletions were intended for Perry. 3) CB Johnathan Joseph: Last year, Joseph stepped in for an injured and drunk Deltha O’Neal. Joseph led the team with 19 pass breakups. Joseph could become one of the AFC best corners if he learned how to catch this offseason. The expectations are high for Joseph and he needs to pick up where he left off last season. Joseph hasn’t played all preseason and it will interesting to finally see him play. 4) CB Leon Hall: Hall worried fans with his lackluster performance in the Detroit game. He was beat by rookie WR Calvin Johnson and WR Shaun McDonald multiple times. It was Hall’s first game, and I thought he played well in the Saints game. I would be surprised if he doesn’t continue to improve with every game that he plays. 5) LB Ahmad Brooks: Brooks played the entire first half of the Detroit game and didn’t register a tackle. After starting four games in ’06, Brooks is penciled in as the starting middle linebacker. Keep a close eye on Brooks; he could be the most important player this season. Brooks had four tackles against the Saints, but he played much of the game including deep into the second half. Brooks still has a lot to learn and time is running out. 6) WR/KR/PR Skyler Green: Two weeks ago at this time, Green had an up-hill battle to earn a roster spot on this team. In Detroit, I believe he earned that spot. Then in the Saints game, he didn’t impress anyone that much, but he caught a touchdown late in the fourth quarter. I will be very surprised if Green isn’t the team’s starting punt returner in the season opener against the Ravens. 7) : LB Lemar Marshall: It is always interesting to see how the newest addition to the team performs. Marshall will hopefully show fans that he is a worthy player. 8) : WR Chad Johnson Sent signed copies of his book I Can’t Be Stopped to all of the Falcons’ defensive backs. You know that he wants to score a touchdown. The first-team offense hasn’t scored yet. I expect him to get one tonight. 9) WR Bennie Brazell: Fans love Brazell for the fact that he is an Olympic track athlete. Members of the Bengals’ media have praised Brazell performance all spring. However, once the preseason started, that praise is non-existent. Brazell needs to do something quick that is unless he wants to spend the year on the practice squad. 10) S Chinedum Ndukwe: Nedu has impressed the coaches and the media during training camp, now it is time to impress the fans. He played well in the Detroit game and finished with four tackles and recovered a fumble. The most impressive thing about Ndukwe is his ability to make open-field solo tackles. However, Nedu looked like he may have been at fault for the blown coverage on the 83-yard touchdown pass from Lions’ QB J.T. O’Sullivan to Shaun McDonald.
Other players I want to mention are S Marvin White, WR Reggie McNeal, DE Frostee Rucker, DT Matt Toeaina, DT Kenderick Allen, CB Keiwan Ratliff, WR Chris Henry, OT Adam Kieft, CB Brandon Williams, TE Nate Lawrie and TE Daniel Coats.
The team needed a linebacker. And they got one on Thursday.
Some Bengal fans wanted the team to sign Jeremiah Trotter. However, today the Bengals signed former St. Xavier local product Lemar Marshall.
Marshall was a cornerback at St. Xavier and came into the NFL as a safety.
The move makes sense due to the recent injury to linebacker Eric Henderson, who is out for the season.
Like fellow free-agent signee Ed Hartwell, Marshall played for coach Marvin Lewis with a team besides Cincinnati.
Marshall recorded his first NFL tackle while Marvin Lewis was the defensive coordinator for the Washington Redskins.
Marshall played for the Redskins from 2001 through 2006. He saw his playing time increase the last three seasons.
In those three seasons, Marshall has started 45 games. Last year, he finished the year with 104 tackles. In 2005, he had 98 tackles (132 according to one source) and had four interceptions.
Marshall will add much needed depth at linebacker and should make an impact on special teams.
Recently, Marshall has been the starter for the Redskins at the middle linebacker position. Which coincidentally is one of the positions where the Bengals have a huge question mark (see Ahmad Brooks). In 2004, he started at the outside linebacker spot when LaVar Arrington was sidelined because of an injury.
Marshall became expendable after the Skins signed London Fletcher-Baker in offseason. There were questions about Fletcher-Baker’s age, 32, but he has looked this preseason. In the team’s first preseason game against the Tennessee Titans, Fletcher-Baker recorded six solo tackles.
So far this preseason, Marshall had two tackles in last weekend’s game against Pittsburgh and added four tackles in Washington’s first preseason game.
Marshall doesn’t have Trotter’s name, but he is a dependable linebacker, who can contribute at all three linebacking positions. That is something that this defense could never have enough of.
Also, the team released tight end Erik Jensen. Jensen signed with the team on August 3rd.
After having another solid performance, linebacker Eric Henderson joins the long list of injured Bengals.
Henderson suffered a broken wrist in the 27-19 loss to the New Orleans Saints on Saturday night. Henderson underwent surgery and could miss up to eight weeks. However, he could be out longer. Nonetheless, the time away will probably cost Henderson his job for the 2007 season.
Obviously that is a negative, but below I listed the negatives and the positives from this weekend’s preseason game.
Negatives Red Zone Scoring- Last week, the Bengals’ first-team offense had two nice drives, but couldn’t punch it in for a touchdown. Everyone expected Cincinnati to get an early touchdown to satisfy a sold-out Paul Brown Stadium. They couldn’t score a touchdown until rookie fifth-round pick quarterback Jeff Rowe threw a 14-yarder to Skyler Green late in the game. Linebacker Eric Henderson forced QB Jamie Martin to fumble the ball, where fellow LB Caleb Miller recovered the ball on the Saints 3. The Bengals couldn’t even score from three yards out. WR Tab Perry- The Bengals threw it to Perry 10 times. He had only two catches for 19 yards. Cincinnati obviously forced it his way, in attempt to get fans to forget that Chris Henry was going to be out for the first half of the season. Five of his Carson Palmer’s six incompletions were intended for Perry. The excuse was that the two ‘haven’t had much of a chance to work with each other.’ Offensive Line- All week leading up to the game, Bengals.com was hyping-up offensive tackle Scott Kooistra. Supposedly, he worked real hard in the offseason and fans shouldn’t worry about not having Willie Anderson on time for the regular-season opener. Add to that, the site thought it was so great that Kooistra would be matched up against defensive end Charles Grant. Then on a third-and-three, Grant crushed Palmer; Palmer fumbled the ball and the Saints recovered. Off that turnover, New Orleans scored on a Reggie Bush touchdown, making the score 17-3. Obviously, the rest of the line wasn’t much better. The running backs averaged only 2.5 yards per carry. Again, the Bengals couldn’t score a touchdown on a first-and-goal from the Saints 3. RB Kenny Watson was stuffed for a four-yard loss on a carry up the middle on first down. QB Carson Palmer- Palmer didn’t look himself, completing only five of 11 passes for 41 yards. However, five of his incompletions were intended for Tab Perry. One of the incompletions, Palmer had Perry wide open for a 33-yard touchdown, but somehow overthrew him.
Positives QB Jeff Rowe- I wasn’t high on Rowe when the Bengals drafted him in the fifth round of 2007 NFL Draft. I didn’t think he put up good enough numbers to even be drafted. However, after two preseason games I’m convinced that Rowe can play some football. In Detroit, he led the Bengals on a last minute drive and set up a game-winning field goal (which was missed). Then on Saturday, Rowe drove the Bengals down the field for the team’s only touchdown. Rowe showed Carson Palmer-like touch when he floated a 22-yard pass on a third-and-four to WR Tony Kays. Then on third-and-10 from the Saints 14, Rowe fired a touchdown pass to Skyler Green. CB Leon Hall- Deltha O’Neal was limping around and the Saints threw away from Hall’s side most of the game. After a shaky performance last week, Hall bounced back in Saturday’s game. On the Saints first drive, Reggie Bush went off-tackle and was stopped by Hall for a one-yard gain. You have to appreciate a corner that defends the run, especially when the play is close to the line of scrimmage. S Herana-Daze Jones-Jones(right) was all over the place. He finished the game with seven solo tackles, including one sack. Also, he defended two passes. Nicknamed ‘Indiana’ Jones, since he attended the school, looks to be in the best shape of his Bengal career. His performance is going to make very difficult for rookie ‘Nedu’ Ndukwe to make this team. TE Daniel Coats- He started in place of Reggie Kelly. Although the running game wasn’t up to par, I thought Coats played well. Bengals.com gave a lot credit for the unsuccessful running attack to the absence of Kelly. However, I believe the main reason was because of the absence of tackles Willie Anderson and Levi Jones. Also, you could throw in the play calling. The Bengals scored on a field goal late in the second quarter. On that drive, QB Doug Johnson threw it Coats way four times. Coats had three catches for 24 yards on that drive and almost scored a touchdown on a tipped ball.
Also, the Bengals waived three players on Monday.
Defensive end Bryan Andrews
Offensive tackle Elliot Seifert
Quarterback Jeff Smith
Fortunately, for the Cincinnati Bengals (0-2), the 27-19 loss to the New Orleans Saints (1-2) didn’t count.
That is the beauty of the preseason.
The Saints, who were playing in their third preseason, looked ready to start the regular season. The Bengals, on the other hand, did not.
In last week’s 26-27 loss to the Detroit Lions, quarterback Carson Palmer looked sharp and led Cincinnati to field goals on his two drives of the game. Statistically, he completed seven of 10 passes for 93 yards.
On Saturday, Palmer looked terrible. He completed five of 11 passes for 41 yards and fumbled the ball. Palmer played on four drives, leading Cincinnati to a 51-yard field goal once.
Bengal fans saw wide receiver Tab Perry for the first time since the second game of last season.
To say that Perry and Palmer ‘weren’t on the same page’, would be an understatement.
Perry was the intended receiver on five of Palmer’s six incompletions. It seemed as though the gameplan was to force it to Perry.
Palmer and Perry almost connected on two big plays.
Palmer tossed it up for Perry on a streak pattern down the sideline, but cornerback Mike McKenzie tipped it. Perry almost caught the ball after the tip. It could’ve been a 41-yard touchdown pass, however it turned out to be a solid play by a veteran CB.
Bengal fans almost went crazy when Perry was wide open for a 33-yard touchdown. On deep post pattern, Perry beat the secondary and Palmer overthrew him. On the next play, Palmer tossed a quick screen to Perry. Perry couldn’t handle the pass as he was hit right away by defensive back Jason David. The play occurred on third and 11. There was little to no chance that Perry would have been able to get the first down. The play was questionable and you could tell Cincinnati was forcing it to Perry.
For the game, Perry had two catches for 19 yards. Also, he had a nice nine-yard run on a reverse.
Later I will break down the positives and negatives of the game
Brian Simmons returns after nine seasons in Cincinnati
By Adam Kiefaber
Kevin Kaesviharn and former Bengal linebacker Brian Simmons return to Cincinnati in a preseason game this Saturday.
Simmons, who attended North Carolina, was drafted 17th overall in the 1998 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals. Earlier in that draft the Bengals grabbed Auburn linebacker Takeo Spikes with the 13th overall pick. Cincinnati obtained the extra first-round pick (the one used on Simmons) when the Washington Redskins signed the franchise-tagged defensive tackle Dan “Big Daddy” Wilkinson (Cincinnati got a third-round pick from Washington as well and used it on offensive guard Mike Goff).
Simmons was a solid, but never a great LB for Cincinnati. His high in sacks was 6.5 (in ‘01) and his high in tackles was 90 (in ‘99). Personally, I didn’t think Simmons was that great of a tackler, however for a linebacker he was great in coverage. For his career he had 11 interceptions and defended 40 passes.
Kaesviharn journey to the NFL isn’t as simple as Simmons, which is one of the reasons he became a fan favorite.
On the morning of October 19th of 2001, the Bengals called Kaesviharn for a tryout. At the time, Kaesviharn was working as a substitute high-school gym teacher in Sioux Falls, S.D.
I remember when he signed with Cincinnati during the ‘01 season; many fans thought it was a joke. Although soon after joining the active roster on November 10th of 2001, Kaesviharn became a fan favorite.
On December 9th of ‘01, Kaesviharn picked off a Mark Burnell pass. The interception set up the Bengals’ only touchdown in a 14-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars (that was when Cincinnati would play Jacksonville twice in a season- do you remember that?). It was the first interception of his career.
“It’s one of those stories, a great story,” cornerbacks coach Kevin Coyle (now the defensive backs coach for Cincy) said at the time. “You just don’t know where it’s going to end up eventually.”
Kaesviharn kept the great story going and his career statistics include 260 tackles, 45 passes defended and 15 interceptions. Last year, Kaesviharn had four sacks and six interceptions.
After playing six seasons for the Cincinnati Bengals, safety Kevin Kaesviharn was rewarded with a fat four-year contract with the New Orleans Saints.
When Kaesviharn signed with Cincinnati, fans thought it was crazy that a substitute high-school gym teacher could make an NFL team. However, that was his job during the fall. During the summer, he played for the Iowa Barnstormers for two seasons. Also, he played for the XFL’s San Francisco Demons for one season.
The biggest thing to watch is the battle in the secondary. Currently I feel that there are only five locks at a spot where the Bengals may keep 10 or 11 players on their roster. 
offensive tackle Adam Kieft was placed on the season-ending injured reserve, linebacker David Pollack was placed on the physically unable to perform list (PUP) and defensive end Jimmy Verdon was placed on the all to common season-ending non-football injury-Europe list. Also, Cincinnati waived two college free agents, wide receiver Tony Kays of California-Davis and fullback Stan White of Ohio State.
Many Bengals’ fans were puzzled when the team selected Auburn’s Kenny Irons in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft. Soon after, the local media beat into everyone’s heads that the former first-round pick Perry (left) would start the season on the PUP, which means he would miss the first six weeks of the season.
Safety Dexter Jackson (right) is expected to sit out on Friday after suffering a concussion when Atlanta Falcon tight end Alge Crumpler ran him over on Monday night.
On another note, quarterback Carson Palmer was elected by his teammates as the offensive captain. On the other side of the ball, defensive tackle John Thornton was elected captain. 
Michael Vick is going to jail, whoop-de-freakin’-doo!
Quarterback Carson Palmer looked sharp completing 15 of 22 passes for 136 yards and threw two touchdowns. Prior to the game, the Bengals’ first-team offense hadn’t scored a touchdown. Also, wide receiver Chad Johnson was on his game. Johnson made one of league’s best cornerbacks, DeAngelo Hall, look like a rookie. Ocho Cinco finished with five catches for 83 yards and caught a touchdown. Running back Rudi Johnson had some solid numbers, he rushed for 69 yards on 13 carries. Defensive tackle Kenderick Allen recorded five tackles, which is impressive for a 350-pounder (listed at 330, but I don’t buy it). Defensive tackle John Thornton had two sacks and the defense held the Falcons to 15 yards on nine carries in the first half. Last year, Atlanta led the entire NFL in rushing. 
Crumpler. Cornerback Keiwan Ratliff had a bunch of tackles, but that was because he played receivers softer than a piece of fresh wonder bread. Offensive tackle Scott Kooistra (above) looked like a polar bear walking backwards on stilts. Levi Jones looked even worse. Even the Bengals’ kicker, Shayne Graham, was injured in the game.
Much of the play calling on offense has been very conservative to say the least. On the lone first-team offensive scoring drive (51-yard FG), the Bengals called a quick wide receiver screen on third and 11. The play wasn’t designed to get the first down. The reason it was called, was to get the ball into Tab Perry’s hands.
2) WR Tab Perry: Perry is one of the most important players on the roster with Chris Henry to miss the first half of the season. Perry practically missed the entire 2006 season when he was injured late in the second game of the year. Supposedly Perry is stronger, faster and has better hands than Henry. Perry looked terrible in the Saints preseason game, none of his quarterbacks seemed to know where to throw it to him. Five of six of Carson Palmer’s incompletions were intended for Perry.
8) : WR Chad Johnson Sent signed copies of his book I Can’t Be Stopped to all of the Falcons’ defensive backs. You know that he wants to score a touchdown. The first-team offense hasn’t scored yet. I expect him to get one tonight.
Henderson suffered a broken wrist in the 27-19 loss to the New Orleans Saints on Saturday night. Henderson underwent surgery and could miss up to eight weeks. However, he could be out longer. Nonetheless, the time away will probably cost Henderson his job for the 2007 season.
offseason and fans shouldn’t worry about not having Willie Anderson on time for the regular-season opener. Add to that, the site thought it was so great that Kooistra would be matched up against defensive end Charles Grant. Then on a third-and-three, Grant crushed Palmer; Palmer fumbled the ball and the Saints recovered. Off that turnover, New Orleans scored on a Reggie Bush touchdown, making the score 17-3. Obviously, the rest of the line wasn’t much better. The running backs averaged only 2.5 yards per carry. Again, the Bengals couldn’t score a touchdown on a first-and-goal from the Saints 3. RB Kenny Watson was stuffed for a four-yard loss on a carry up the middle on first down.
Jones(right) was all over the place. He finished the game with seven solo tackles, including one sack. Also, he defended two passes. Nicknamed ‘Indiana’ Jones, since he attended the school, looks to be in the best shape of his Bengal career. His performance is going to make very difficult for rookie ‘Nedu’ Ndukwe to make this team.
the franchise-tagged defensive tackle Dan “Big Daddy” Wilkinson (Cincinnati got a third-round pick from Washington as well and used it on offensive guard Mike Goff).
“It’s one of those stories, a great story,” cornerbacks coach Kevin Coyle (now the defensive backs coach for Cincy) said at the time. “You just don’t know where it’s going to end up eventually.”