Newly acquired Brian Leonard could be a big factor in the Bengals running game in 2009. Even though it appears that he is a lock to make the roster, is there a chance that he will be beat out for the job?
BENGALSTRIPES – For the next few months leading up to Sept. 13 opener, you will read stories in the paper about the return of Carson Palmer, the mood set of Chad Ochocinco, the determination of Cedric Benson and dozens of other fluffy articles about the Bengals’ projected starters.
While everyone else is writing the same story, my interest will be on position battles and there is not one more interesting to me than in the backfield where the Bengals currently feature 12 players that are battling for only four spots.
As of right now, there appears to be only one lock to make the roster in Cedric Benson. Last season, Benson rushed for 747 yards, 412 of which in the team’s last four games. Expect a lot of hype on Benson from the local media as early as this week.
Behind Benson, is the newly acquired Brian Leonard, who appears to be a lock for a roster spot as well because of his versatility. Leonard can be used as a lead blocker, a receiver out of the backfield, a pass protector and every thing in between.
However, before you give a roster spot to Leonard, the Bengals will have to consider veterans Kenny Watson, James Johnson and DeDe Dorsey for the role as the third-down back.
Then you also have rookies Bernard Scott and Marlon Lucky. Scott has already received rave reviews for his quickness. Lucky seems destined for the practice squad despite having a productive career at Nebraska. Personally, I had always been a fan of Lucky and he is a great receiver out of the backfield.
After that, you have the fullbacks where five will battle for one spot.
The early favorites appear to be rookies Fui Vakapuna and Chris Pressley. Vakapuna was the team’s seventh-round selection, while Pressley signed as a college free agent. Currently both players are getting most of the reps at this spring’s OTAs, while veteran Jeremi Johnson has decided to skip the OTAs.
Others in the hunt include J.D. Runnels and Daniel Coats. Both players would appear to be longshots to make the roster this season, but I wouldn’t count either out. Coats was used as the primary fullback last season and was awful. In his defense, he is a tight end, but the Bengals appear to full at that position with Reggie Kelly, Ben Utecht and third-round pick Chase Coffman, not to mention last year’s sixth-round pick Matt Sherry.
Again, below is a list of all the backs competing for those four spots – it should definitely be interesting. Below that is a cool video showcasing the Bengals’ draft picks.
Running backs
32 Cedric Benson RB 5-11 220 12/28/1982 Texas
XX Brian Leonard RB/FB 6-1 229 2/3/1984 Rutgers
XX Bernard Scott RB 5-10 200 2/10/1984 Albilene Christian
33 Kenny Watson RB 6-0 220 3/13/1978 Penn State
39 James Johnson RB 5-11 202 9/6/1984 Kansas State
27 DeDe Dorsey RB 5-11 203 8/1/1984 Lindenwood
XX Marlon Lucky RB 5-11 215 2/28/1986 Nebraska
Fullbacks
31 Jeremi Johnson FB 5-11 270 9/4/1980 Western Kentucky
XX Fui Vakapuna FB 5-11 244 BYU
XX Chris Pressley FB 5-11 257 8/8/1986 Wisconsin
38 J.D. Runnels FB 5-11 242 10/26/1981 Oklahoma
86 Daniel Coats FB/TE 6-3 264 4/16/1984 Brigham Young
I know this is not necessarily on topic, but you have to love this video of the NFL Draft when the Bengals selected Rey Maualuga in the second round.
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