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NFL Draft: Keith Rivers Will Help the Cincinnati Bengals On and Off the Field

Posted: Apr 26th 2008 4:25PM by Sportz Assassin (author feed)
Filed under: Bengals, AFC North, NFL Draft, Cincinnati

The linebacker position in Cincinnati has been quite the adventure:

Odell Thurman played well in his rookie season of 2005 ... but has sat out the last two seasons for violating the league's substance abuse policy. David Pollack broke his neck in his second game of his second season and was forced to retire. A.J. Nicholson's career didn't last too long after off-field issues. Ahmad Brooks has barely seen the field due to injuries.

This was a team that had to bring Dhani Jones off the scrap heap ... and he turned into one of their best defensive players. At one point last year, the Bengals couldn't field a linebacking corps at all. Keith Rivers will be a big, big help there.

There have been rumblings that the Bengals could move to the 3-4 defense and Rivers would be a great fit if they do. He has the ability to rush the passer as well as cover backs and tight ends. Right now, the Bengals will have Brooks and Jones seemingly as starters with Thurman, Rashad Jeanty and Eric Henderson as other options.

Continue Reading NFL Draft: Keith Rivers Will Help the Cincinnati Bengals On and Off the Field

Bengals Set Practice Squad Roster

Posted: Sep 5th 2006 1:54AM by JD Arney (author feed)
Filed under: Bengals, AFC North

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Because this is the most exciting news we'll probably get before Sunday, here's the list of players the Bengals signed to their practice squad:

John Busing - Safety
Ronnie Ghent - TE
Eric Henderson - DE
Glenn Holt - WR
Nate Livings - OL
Naufahu Tahi - FB
Ben Wilkerson - OL

Reggie McNeal, the quarterback turned wide receiver from Texas A&M (pictured to the right), is expected to join the practice squad on Wednesday according to Bengals.com writer Geoff Hobson:

When the Bengals return to work Wednesday, wide receiver Reggie McNeal is expected back as the last member of the practice squad. On Saturday, head coach Marvin Lewis said the Bengals told him they wanted to develop him as both a quarterback and receiver, and that will begin Wednesday when the club continues preparation for Sunday's regular-season opener in Kansas City.

I'm really glad to see Tahi kept after his nice performance last Friday night, and it can't hurt to keep Wilkerson either. Wilkerson is a project that's never panned out, but you never know when something might click with him.

An interesting tidbit that I'd wondered about in the past: practice squad players are paid $4,350 a week according to this, which seems like a fairly decent amount of money for getting the opportunity to keep one foot in the NFL door.

Only five more days until we can focuse on slightly more important things. WHO-DEY!

More: Bengals sign seven to practice squad - Bengals.com

Bengals Swing the Axe

Posted: Sep 2nd 2006 8:31PM by JD Arney (author feed)
Filed under: Bengals, AFC North

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22 roster moves were made today, and there were some surprising names involved (although not as surprising as a few other teams moves - still amazed at the Detroit fiasco with Charles Rogers). From Mark Curnutte, the full list:

WAIVED: wide receivers Glenn Holt, P.K. Sam and McNeal, offensive linemen Nate Livings, Kyle Takavitz, Pete Lougheed and Wilkerson, tight ends Darnell Sanders, David Jones and Ghent, running backs DeDe Dorsey, Naufahu Tahi and Chris Manderino, defensive lineman Eric Henderson and safety John Busing.

PUP: tailback Chris Perry, defensive end Jonathan Fanene and offensive lineman Adam Kieft.

IR: wide receiver Bennie Brazell, cornerback Patrick Body and defensive tackle Marcus Lewis.

SUSPENDED: Linebacker Odell Thurman was officially placed on the "Reserve/Suspended by Commissioner" list for his second violation of the league substance abuse policy.

The names that surprise me the most here are Reggie McNeal, the Bengals sixth rounder from this past draft. McNeal was Texas A&M's quarterback, but the Bengals drafted him as a wide receiver / special teams player. The pick confused me then, and I guess it confuses me even more now. As deep as this team is at wide receiver I just don't understand why they wasted a draft pick on the position.

I'm also surprised to see center Ben Wilkerson cut. I'd always assumed he'd one day be the heir to Rich Braham, but I guess that won't be happening now. Eric Ghiaciuc kind of made him redundant. The Bengals also cut a couple of players who had impressive preseasons in Tahi and Dorsey, which is to be expected with how deep this team is.

I'm glad to see Bennie Brazell kept, I think he has a future in the NFL in some capacity. The guy's crazy fast and speed is always worth something.
The most gratifying part of cut day has to be seeing so many quality players getting waived, players who could easily play for plenty of NFL teams. It's impressive that the Bengals have enough talent to waive guys like McNeal and Wilkerson.

More: Team makes 22 roster moves - Mark Curnutte's Blog
Roster Cut Thoughts - Cincy Jungle