By Adam Kiefaber
The Cincinnati Bengals are one day into their voluntary camp and with what the media is telling me there is no reason why this team won’t win the Super Bowl this year.
All the talk from the first day was about running backs Rudi Johnson and Chris Perry.
Mark Curnutte of The Cincinnati Enquirer writes, “starting tailback Rudi Johnson has increased his weight to 225 pounds, up from 212 last year, and looks again like the bruising between-the-tackles runner of 2004 and 2005.”
Chick Ludwig of The Dayton Daily News writes in his blog, “Rudi is determined to play at 225 pounds and become the Jerome Bettis-style hammer between the tackles that he once was.”
Wasn’t it just last year that the leaner Rudi Johnson was going to run past defenders, now he is Jerome Bettis?
The media’s answer would be, but Rudi was hurt last year!
I would have to fire back that he has been injured every year, after his 2003 breakout season, Johnson has missed the majority of the club’s weekday practices during every season. That excuse has always been there. I am a huge Bengals fan, but do we really need the hype?
Isn’t that how the fan base got to love “The WR”? The media made him out to be this fun-loving guy, when (I met him) he was really a spoiled brat. Honestly, with his background it may not be his fault, it might be the media’s - they fall in love with these players when they should be more objective since that is what journalism is all about.
It just baffles me that players Corey Dillion, “The WR” and Carl Pickens have had so much trouble with this media that loves them and would never write anything negative until they are avoided.
I am by no means trying to call out the media (I personally know that Chick is a great guy), but just don’t believe everything you read.
4 comments ↓
No, we don’t need any hype! We need results from players and I don’t think that Rudi can transform himself into anything other than what he is; a poor performer. Yes, he wants to be the big man on campus now that there is some competition. I agree, we all need a big dose of reality…starting with some of the press. We need to take this year one game at a time!
Chick Ludwig is a big time homer. He has never been totally objective, which I am ok with because I need a little hope occasionally in my life as a sports fan. But being a homer myself, I can say that this is the LEAST excited I’ve been about any Bengals team since 2003. If Chad can be a big boy this year and do his job, and if Odell can comeback and stay straight, the Whodeys MIGHT make the playoffs.
Okay, so this is a bit preemptive considering you have yet to write an article on the recent roster developments - specifically the Odell cut - but I now have 2 jerseys that have been rendered irrelevant by the Bengal’s off-season transactions and I needed to vent. Not cool. I can’t imagine why they would cut him after missing one week of VOLUNTARY camps for his Grandmother’s funeral. Granted he would’ve had a lot to prove and should’ve taken every opportunity to do so, but a funeral for the woman who raised him… c’mon. So I’m thinking that there’s got to be something else to the story, but for now I am just a speculating, jersey-less commenter. Dig deep, Kief. I’d like to know the “ins and outs” of this one.
My sources are telling me that Odell was caught at Magic City “making it rain” with Bengalstripes’ fan, Chris Sabo Fan Club Prez.
A drunken baby-faced linebacker pairing up with a president of a club that honors a baseball player with a face that resembles a bull terrier with sports goggles is pretty hard to miss in a downtown Atlanta strip club.
More digging to come my friend.
And the jerseys! It is hard for me to feel sorry for you - this offseason has made me a big loser as well - Madieu and that other guy that may not say his name -
This is making me angry - I will release my rage in a post very soon!
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