| My deepest apologies go out to
Bengals boosters far and wide. After thinking long and hard about it, I’ve decided
that Cincinnati might just have the best shot among the NFL’s so-called long shots to
defy the odds and become a postseason force to reckon with.
I also like the Cowboys and Chiefs a whole lot in the same vein, but the Bengals —
primarily due to an up-and-coming defense that could get even better with the addition of
free agent DT Sam Adams — are looking better to me all the time.
So that should be good news, right?
Wrong.
The Bengals, you see, are the Chicago Cubs of the NFL. No matter how promising they
might look on paper, they always find a way to screw things up.
When the Cubs went out and got Moises Alou following the 2001 season, I immediately
decided that I would significantly increase the number of games I would be attending this
season at beautiful Wrigley Field (yeah, it’s still beautiful, despite the current
poisoned patch of ivy courtesy of some numbskull who most North Siders suspect is a
deranged White Sox fan).
As it turned out, though, Alou has been a monumental bust, although he has shown shades
of busting out within the last few weeks.
But, as any legitimate Cubs fan knows, those shades are the latest in an
industrial-sized pile of false hopes that make the Hancock Building look like a doll house
in comparison.
Sam Adams? In addition to sharing names with a rather tasty brand of brew, the hefty
interior lineman is destined to become the NFL’s version of Alou — a highly
regarded performer who suddenly hits the skids on a team in which failure and
disappointment is almost always inevitable.
It should be noted that Adams, who is said to be suddenly very interested in becoming a
Bengal, would definitely be carrying some baggage with him to Cincy, having been tagged as
a malingerer and underachiever with a penchant for overeating more than a few times in his
eight-year career.
But the prospect of Adams teaming up in a DT rotation with Oliver Gibson and Tony
Williams under the direction of two of the NFL’s brightest defensive coaches —
coordinator Mark Duffner and line coach Tim Krumrie — makes an already solid defense
look like one of the best the league has to offer.
Granted, Cincy’s offense and quirky front office leave a lot to be desired. But if
featured runner Corey Dillon can become more consistent — and avoid his penchant for
busting loose for 250 yards every six or seven games and being a nonfactor the rest of the
time — and the Bengals can sign first-round pick OT Levi Jones before training camp
— something they haven’t been able to do with six of their past seven
first-rounders — there could be genuine reason for optimism.
Oh yeah, a solid QB situation certainly wouldn’t hurt, although I think the
Bengals, with their defense and potentially potent ground game, could survive nicely even
with the most ordinary of signalcallers, provided said signalcaller plays it close to the
vest and keeps his mistakes to an absolute minimum.
After all is said and done, though, if the Bengals end up bungling their season away,
nary an eyebrow will be raised.
They’re the Cubs of the NFL, you see, and that means there’s only one
category in which they’re liable to lead the league.
Shattered dreams. |
