No drama at Bengal OTAS
Last year’s lockout likely helped boost squad to successful run.
A couple observations CINCINNATI — now that we’re halfway through the Organized Team Activities and minicamp portion of the Bengals’ offseason program:
The lockout actually was a benefit: So far the story lines of OTAs have been about the position battles at wide receiver and cornerback along with tracking how much improvement Andy Dalton has made.
It has also been an OTA in which everyone is here, which was not the case in previous seasons. That also means it has been drama-free, which would not have been the case last year had there been a normal offseason.
Had there been OTAs, there would have been a circus atmosphere worse than the infamous Chad Ochocinco minicamp of 2008.
There would have been a steady stream of national media polling the locker room on opinions about Carson Palmer along with every throw of Andy Dalton and Jordan Palmer being analyzed.
Ochocinco would have been traded or released by this point, but I don’t know if you could say the same about Palmer. Considering how adamant Mike Brown was about not trading Palmer, he most likely would have still been here. Some might point to last year’s draft in which Jake Locker and Christian Ponder went in the top 12 as evidence that teams would be ready to offer a first- and second-round pick for Palmer before the draft, but Dalton’s development over the first six games also gave Brown the security of dealing Palmer.
It was during the first week of June last year that players gathered in Mason and at the University of Cincinnati to conduct their own workouts. Besides having one of the highestattended player workouts, it allowed everyone to get on the same page and away from the glare of cameras.
The receivers race: When handicapping the six receiver spots, it looks like A.J. Green, Jordan Shipley and Mohamed Sanu are locks. That leaves a mad rush among the other three spots. Brandon Tate and Armon Binns have had solid offseasons so far, but a lot can change between now and the final roster cuts on Aug. 31.
No matter who the six are, offensive coordinator Jay Gruden thinks it will be a better group from top to bottom because of the versatility the players have.
“It’s good to have a variety of guys that can line up in a couple of different spots. I think that might be a little bit different than what we had last year,” Gruden said.
Biggest surprise of the offseason: Considering that I didn’t have much of an opportunity to see him in practices last year, Binns continues to show in practices why the coaches were eager to try and get him into games last season.
Said Gruden about Binns: “Just overall, he’s got a great feel for the game. ... As much as Andy is a timing thrower, that’s important. He gets in and out of his breaks in a hurry ... and obviously he’s a big target with great hands.”
Forget the Big Ten-ACC Challenge. Let’s put some marketing muscle behind the Big Ten-Atlantic 10 Throwdown. The additions of Butler and VCU this season, coupled with Temple’s farewell tour before joining the Big East, could make the A-10 one of the nation’s best college basketball leagues.
Dayton should be improved in Archie Miller’s second season, but the Flyers might be fortunate to finish .500 in the league. But a .500 mark in the A-10 could carry the same amount of weight on Selection Sunday as it would for teams in the “power” conferences.