Don't Ever Sleep On the Bengals

Is former Raiders' quarterback Jamarcus Russell going to be a Cincinnati Bengal? Chad Ocho Cinco has proclaimed that he "would see Jamarcus Russell in mini camp" via Twitter. Take it with a grain of salt but OCNN broke the signing of Adam Jones and the visit of Terrell Owens. This has the Twitter world all a flutter.

Even though I pretty much guaranteed that Russell would never play in the NFL again, I obviously forgot that the Cincinnati Bengals are still an NFL franchise. They are always looking to snatch up physically talented players at dollar store prices, and Russell fits that description. He also fits a need as the Bengals need a solid backup. 

The question is: can Russell develop into a dependable back up? How will he fit into a locker room that already has guys who have made questionable decisions in the past? For the money he'll get, getting a look at Jamarcus will be cost effective. Fortunately for Russell, Cincy is a long ways away from Vegas.





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Redskins, Please!

Courtesy of UPI.com

Pro Football Talk is reporting that the Redskins are interested in a quarterback with the fourth overall pick.

You can't trust anything that comes out in the media the week before the draft, and I love every bit of it.

Does anybody really believe that the message they want to send to Donovan McNabb is, "Here's the guy who is going to take your job"?  Donovan has been there for two weeks and hasn't even taken a snap with the team.  If the source that let this little gem slip out doesn't have brown eyes.......

The Redskins have so many needs that a report like this becomes laughable.  I understand that teams must "play the game", and perception is - at times - more important than reality.  The Redskins are keeping their options open in hopes of attracting a trade partner who wants to move up and select a quarterback.  They can get in line behind St. Louis, Detroit, and a slew of other teams in the first round.

In my recent mock draft, I have Russell Okung going to the Redskins with the fourth overall pick.  Sam Bradford won't be available, and Jimmy Clausen doesn't hold value at that pick.  There is a chance that Ndamukong Suh or Gerald McCoy could fall to them, or they could prefer Oklahoma tackle Trent Williams.  However, selecting a quarterback would be an unmitigated media disaster.  I don't think Washington has really forgotten all of the craziness that surrounded McNabb when the Eagles selected Kevin Kolb in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft.

In the words of Bengals wide receiver Chad Ochocinco, I can sum up this report in one simple phrase:  "Child, please!"






Every Morning Quarterback by Aharon Williams is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at www.everymorningqb.com.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at www.everymorningqb.com.