If you had to pick one free agent that Cincinnati could sign when free agency kicks off on March 13, which player would have in first position. The must-sign. It can be a player coming from another team, or a Bengals player that will be entering free agency. But you can only pick one. Who? And if you're a fan of basketball, The Walking Dead then this open thread is for you.
0 recs | 80 comments
Dashon Goldson = dream guy...I know
Dwayne Bowe = dream guy
Trade back for Carson Palmer…..kidding
I would faint if we signed either one of these guys…both of their teams will most likely lock them up….but ya never know
ticalcaldwell - February 12, 2012
D. Bowe
I just couldnt imagine having another weapon like this for Dalton….
ticalcaldwell - February 12, 2012
A dream it may be but ya never know....
whodeycommish14 - February 12, 2012 via mobile
Yes, D Bowe
Something about that guy paired up with Green makes me want him in stripes more than Wayne or any other WR. Don’t know why I just think it’s would be awesome.
Bigcatdaddy - February 12, 2012 via Android app
Umm...
Maybe because he’s one of the best WR’s in the game? Lol
whodeycommish14 - February 12, 2012 via mobile
I know but he may not be the best FA
V. Jackson IMO is better but I just like Bowe with Green lol.
Bigcatdaddy - February 12, 2012 via Android app
Haha I hear ya.
V Jack is a beast. I just don’t think you can go wrong either way. Bowe is more versatile I think. He hasn’t really ever had a good QB throwing to him either. He’s big, runs good routes, and definitely plays with an edge. I’d love to see him in stripes.
Man, all this FA talk has me drooling.
whodeycommish14 - February 12, 2012 via mobile
Am thinking the same thing........
we’ve got some $‘s to spend and a month to talk about it……..FA and the draft can’t get here fast enough!
The Van Buren Boys - February 12, 2012
I think Bowe is the guy that can do what would help AJ the most. That’s run the routes behind the LB and in front of the safeties. He’s got the frame and they have to respect his abilities enough to possibly draw both safeties down leaving AJ one on one. Not to mention what it would do for Shipley and Gresh. I rather them leave AJ out of that area and it would give Shipley a few yrs on his life expectancy lol. IMO we need a guy to get in that area more than just stretching the field.
Bigcatdaddy - February 12, 2012 via Android app
I strongly disagre
He’s good, but he’s got no heart. He makes TO look selfless when it comes to going up for the ball. Besides, the Chiefs aren’t letting him go.
indesignkat - February 12, 2012
TO makes Dwyane Bowe look like a saint
whodeycommish14 - February 12, 2012 via mobile
Did you see the play where he was in the endzone
and jumped up, the ball was heading right to him, and he pulled his arms in and literally hugged himself because he knew he was about to get hit. In the end zone. Ball easily catchable if he put his arms out to grab it. That’s what you get with Bowe. Game on the line and he can make a play? He will try, if he doesn’t think he’ll get hurt. Him before the team.
indesignkat - February 13, 2012
Goldson may be a smidge overrated.
He’s not as good in coverage as you might think.
jsl413 - February 12, 2012
I probably wont get much love for this choice but:
Reggie Nelson. He played a pivotal part of our defense and with so few safety’s on the roster we NEED him back. Very few safety’s available in draft and Free Agency, why not lock up the one that has been with us and helped our defense be a top 10 defense.
I would have answered Ray Rice/Matt Forte but I doubt their respective teams let them walk farther than 20 feet out of the stadium. Thought I would make it a realistic but very needed signing.
Alexneyer - February 12, 2012
I feel you
He’s my #1 priority in terms of retaining our own, but even if your’e not assuming this thread is about bringing in new outside talent, I’d still argue that Nelson could be replaced. I hope we dont’ have to do that, but he’s not as elite as Nicks or Forte or Rice or Colston or Landry or whoever else is going to get tossed around in this thread.
eric nyc - February 12, 2012
+1
Christian Gaarde Nielsen - February 12, 2012
i agree with you
i hope they at least franchise him, if they cant resign him to a multi year deal
AMAS85 - February 13, 2012
ray rice.
not even a contest. cripples ravens and helps our wco running game.
palewook - February 12, 2012
thats never gonna happen, the ravens are going to lock him up
thegrassisGREENer18 - February 12, 2012
not the game we are playing here.
the question the op asked. if you could have any FA, who would it be.
palewook - February 12, 2012
Franchise tag for RB's this year is stupid low
Something like $7 million. Rice is worth $12. They’d let Flacco walk before they let Rice go.
eric nyc - February 12, 2012
I agree
Rice will not leave Balt anytime soon
ticalcaldwell - February 12, 2012
no doubt.
but until the tag is on ray rice, he’s a FA and fair game for the op’s question.
palewook - February 12, 2012
+1000000
that’s thinking big.
Which is why you would be laughed out of Mikey’s office.
occams_tiger_teeth - February 12, 2012
Mario Williams
He would be my dream pick-up.
Mario, Geno and Carlos rushing the passer would take a ton of pressure off the secondary and make this team scary good.
I would be happy with Carr or Nicks
Yarin - February 12, 2012
forgot about Mario +1
ticalcaldwell - February 12, 2012
RE:
Plus Dontay Moch’s eventual arrival. Here’s hoping he’s worth it.
Josh Kirkendall - February 12, 2012
It would be hard to be upset with a Mario Williams signing...
I mean our pass rush would be insane. But our defense is built so that it can rotate guys in to keep them fresh – everyone knows that, but the hidden benefit of it is that you keep your pass rush CHEAP. No one’s playing enough snaps to put up gaudy numbers and demand ridiculous contracts. That might change over the next year or two, but in the meantime you probably want to keep that unit as cheap as possible so you can address the secondary and offense. Mario Williams would pretty much break the bank for this year and probably the next 2 or 3 years. You’d have to be damn sure you had every single other piece in place to make a Super Bowl run if you made that move.
eric nyc - February 12, 2012
carl nicks
without a doubt
bengal4life68 - February 12, 2012
RE:
Me too. We’re going to have a more Carl Nicks oriented posting later this afternoon.
Josh Kirkendall - February 12, 2012
saints have major cap issues coming
saints are sitting at 94 million without counting brees. if brees agrees to a market rate of 12 million per year, will put the saints at 106 million for 2012 without signing any of their other free agents.
New Orleans Saints Free Agents in 2012: John Kasay, kicker; Drew Brees, quarterback; Shaun Rogers, defensive tackle; John Gilmore, tight end; Aubrayo Franklin, defensive tackle; Marques Colston, receiver; Pat McQuistan, offensive line; Courtney Roby, receiver; Leigh Torrence, cornerback; Jeff Charleston, defensive end; Turk McBride, defensive end; Robert Meachem, receiver; Jo-Lonn Dunbar, linebacker; Carl Nicks, guard; Tracy Porter, cornerback.
palewook - February 12, 2012
Would we want Shaun Rogers or Aubrayo Franklin if we can't re-sign Pat Sims?
DTFCPDX - February 12, 2012
I couldnt agree more !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
your exactly right! everyone else’s choices are great choices, but it starts up front, and when we’ve been needing guard help and one of the best guards in the nfl is up in free agency , it’s a dream come true. Carl Nicks or Ben Grubbs must be your top priority!!! preferable Nicks
thegrassisGREENer18 - February 12, 2012
What about Brees? He's a FA
Let Dalton sit behind him a few yrs abd who’s to say we wouldn’t get Nicks to follow or fix the line in the Draft. Just a thought.
The Walking Dead returns! Can’t wait, I say they take the farm over for themselves.
Bigcatdaddy - February 12, 2012 via Android app
I am a "Game of Thrones" guy myself
dying for season 2
ticalcaldwell - February 12, 2012
Never seen it but heard good things
I’m going to have to check it out. When does the 2nd season start? Justified & Sons of Anarchy are worth a watch also.
Bigcatdaddy - February 12, 2012 via Android app
I think it's April
It’s pretty good, but I much prefer just about anything on Showtime. Dexter, Shameless, Californication, House of Lies…
Game of Thrones is kinda fun, but it’s got a ton of cringe-worthy moments. Lots of incest, rape, and stale repetition of dialogue. I swear there probably aren’t 14 pages in that first book that don’t contain someone saying “Winter is coming”
indesignkat - February 13, 2012
absolutely
indesignkat - February 12, 2012
+1
biggie22 - February 12, 2012
i'm w/ ya
i agree….Carl Nicks….we need a top shelf OG in FA….
& we have the money…..
& if we don’t trade up for RB T. Richardson we wouldn’t feel presured to pick Cordy Glenn if DeCastro is already off the board when we pick in rd #1…
greenheart - February 25, 2012
Carl Nicks all the way
He wouldn’t solve all of our problems, but he would instantly make both Dalton and WHOEVER is running the football behind him much much better. He’d give whoever is lining up as the #2 wideout more time to either get open or create a distraction to let AJ, Gresham, or Shipley to do the same. He’d finally allow Marvin to run the grinding rush attack that he seems dedicated to running no matter what personnel he has. Nicks would single-handily take the weakest position on our offense and become arguably the best player at his position in the entire unit. Plus, with his age, you could wrap him up for 6-7 years and have an anchor for your O-line running right into the prime of Andy’s career. I’ve said it before, but it makes so much sense that I’m almost positive it won’t happen.
eric nyc - February 12, 2012
Agree
Carl Nicks. Dominant OG with ability to play OT.
Jim Spann - February 12, 2012
If we get Nicks..
I wouldn’t mind moving Andre inside and have Collins start where he was at…….Whitworth,Nicks,Cook,Smith,Collins.
Bengal4ever - February 12, 2012
Won't happen
Not that it’s not a good idea, but it won’t happen. We’ve never even tried Andre out at guard. It’s a Madden move that fans love to talk about but the coaches clearly have no intention of even messing around with it. Andre is just finding himself at the RT spot. He could be due for a monster season next year. Changing positions would only set him back. If anything, maybe Collins could take some snaps with the 1st team line at RG during camp.
eric nyc - February 12, 2012
That's also assuming we re-sign Collins
My guess is he’ll get paid to be a starting tackle for another team and we won’t be able to match it.
eric nyc - February 12, 2012
We should re-sign Collins
He’s our depth guy, we need him in case Andre has another injury…He should be on the list of top guys we should re-sign imo.
Bengal4ever - February 12, 2012
depth guy?
He’s the 2nd best lineman on the team. He’s going to go to another team and be a starting RT and be great at it. We’ve known that for a couple years now.
indesignkat - February 13, 2012
Agreed, Collins deserves a starting job.
If he doesn’t think he’ll get a fair shot here then I’m sure he’ll leave. I hope we re0-sign him to start so he doesn’t become another Mathis.
The Van Buren Boys - February 13, 2012
Start Collins at left guard!
DTFCPDX - February 13, 2012
Carl Nicks
If we could add a pro bowl guard on the inside of our line that would help greatly for Dalton and the RB. The OG position is our biggest need on this team and Mike Brown should spend his money on someone that is guranteed to be good.
Bengal4ever - February 12, 2012
I truly believe
Mikey Brown finally steps up to the plate. Ooooh what a world that would be!!!
bengal4life68 - February 12, 2012
Let's get Nicks and get the running game off the ground finally!
Nicks would be huge, I know everyone on here is skeptical that we won’t do it, but with the money we have I hope we go after a big fish versus just signing mediocre talent. Nicks would be huge for us, would help open up our draft considerably.
The Van Buren Boys - February 12, 2012
Mario Williams
Defense still rules in a passing league. With Atkins and Dunlap our ready on d line that would be biggest upgrade on team. You’ll be pretty much unstoppable on defense
pray4gm11 - February 12, 2012 via mobile
Williams would be a great signing as well........
he, Dunlap, Atkins and Co. would be a force for several years to come. A secondary’s best friend is a fierce pass rush….and that group would be awesome. Add to it a draft of a couple young CB’s (Kirkpatrick or Gilmore)……..wow. Best D in AFC North, if not league within a couple years.
The Van Buren Boys - February 12, 2012
Nicks!!!
Got dominated against everybody on 49ers d-line. Plays in a division with weak pass rushers. Too me is most overrated player in free agency.
pray4gm11 - February 12, 2012 via mobile
One game
And I wouldn’t exactly say he personally got dominated in that game. The whole line was not coached well to protect against the 49ers stunts. But when you’ve got a QB breaking 30-year odl passing records, his line is pretty good. Nicks is a monster and he could probably still beat most of us in a foot race.
eric nyc - February 12, 2012
Pretty decent but not dominated. I think it has more too do with coaching than a single player. Like you mentioned NO line is pretty good.
pray4gm11 - February 12, 2012 via mobile
Carl Nicks without a doubt
He would be perfect here. Not to mention, I think he’s the best Guard in the game—hands down. There really isn’t a chink in his armor. Also, he’s versatile and can play different positions on the line. Getting Nicks could definitely take this offense to the next level. Especially in the run game.
whodeycommish14 - February 12, 2012 via mobile
C. Nicks - (OG)
It would really help us out pick up a pair of guards. That would open up the draft, and he’s the top guy out there. This would herald and end to the era of the Bengals’ reign as the landing spot of last resort on your way out of the league.
Boomer Lion - February 12, 2012 via mobile
Let me open a reality window and
Say Pat Sims is the first guy they should sign.
Carl Nicks, Mario Williams, Ray Rice are names from fantasy football. They will never be in stripes.
BENGALS69 - February 12, 2012
Mario Williams would command too much money. Not that Mike Brown wouldn’t spend it, but he shouldn’t.
Ray Rice will at the very least be franchised.
Carl Nicks? He is there for the taking. There is no reason the Bengals couldn’t ink him. Not at all fantasy. And it would be a great use of money.
Cry - February 12, 2012
Highly doubtful because
The draft is deep for OL. Why pay mega bucks for Nicks when you can find deeply talented men in the draft for less?
BENGALS69 - February 12, 2012
Talented guys like Clint Boling and Jonathan Luigis?
Sorry, Nicks is 26 years old and a perennial All Pro. If you know a way to guarantee we get out of a draft, I’m sure there are 32 teams in the NFL who would love to talk to you about a nice fat scouting contract.
eric nyc - February 12, 2012
Thats funny
njbengalstat - February 12, 2012
Reggie Nelson
plug-nickel - February 12, 2012
one to hold
plug-nickel - February 12, 2012
I'll take Ladarius Web
He is a stud corner, proven vet and could bolster our D up so that we could pick in the draft for talent and not only need…
there are a lot of questionmarks with the cb’s off thsi class (if you are going for talent) so rather take a guy we know can play and does he’s work on/of the field!
That way we could bolster up the O-line with guys like DeCastro and take players without falling back to the same old Bungals that we have been befor (where we took players with off-field concerns)
Christian Gaarde Nielsen - February 12, 2012
You'd spend a first round pick on Webb?
Cry - February 12, 2012
The O-line is the weakest link on this team
It needs a good free agent at guard. And the draft could be used to add depth. If the Bengals dont do that, I will be a very disappointed fan. I will question if they truelly want to compete to be the best.
EPK1979 - February 12, 2012 via mobile
Whats this im reading about shifting over remaining cap?
On profootballtalk they have an article talking about how team can transfer their remaining cap number from 2011 and add it to 2012 cap number. I’m not sure if it raises that teams cap number or is it a way for teams to save money? Idk just wondering?
GonzoMyk - February 12, 2012
Very interesting
Could be a way of saving certain teams asses. Ehhhm (pitt & n.o.). I’ve heard of a team being able to borrow against next seasons cap but this is the first I’ve heard of this. I also read that hidden in the new NFL rules that a touchback will now go to the 25 instead of the 20. Anyone else hear of this?
Bigcatdaddy - February 12, 2012 via Android app
any chance the pats dont sign green-ellis?
I think he is the best fa rb out there. he runs hard up the middle, doesnt let the ball go. doesnt have a history of injuries and is a solid character guy. just my opinion and prob pats resign him but id like him in orange and black.
NYBengalsfan1 - February 12, 2012
He's my fav FA RB
The Pats drafted a guy last yr can’t remember his name but he started to get carries toward the end of the season. He looked good and they have Woodhead so,it’s a good possibility he hits the market. I would rather see him than Bush.
Bigcatdaddy - February 12, 2012 via Android app
I kind of hate Green-Ellis
Whenever I watch him run I just cringe at his style. He jumps into holes, stops, waits to see what happens, and then lunges for an extra yard or two. I haven’t followed his career that closely and I dont’ know all of his stats, but it seems to me like the only reason he’s even considered a serviceable RB is because he’s always run behind Tom Brady and hasn’t seen an 8-man box in his entire professional career. He doesn’t attack the holes with power, he doesn’t have any kind of top end speed, he doesn’t bounce to the outside with any kind of quickness. Honestly I don’t know if he could even be a decent change of pace back in any system that didn’t feature an elite QB. I think the Pats will re-sign him for WAY less money than anyone expects and he’ll continue to play the same role he has his whole career – token rushing “threat” behind a potent passing offense. I can’t imagine why we would go after him with all the other options in FA and the draft.
eric nyc - February 12, 2012
It is kind of hard to judge any Pats RB's
I see what your saying about probably never seeing 8 men in the box or just a run blitz out of a base package for that matter. I haven’t watch him that much but I did keep an eye on him through out the playoffs and he looked good to me. He doesn’t nose dive through the line but he is careful to run behind his blocks. He got outside on a few plays with enough speed to turn the corner but not break away. I really wanted to see what kind of receiver he was but I’m thinking he only caught one pass. He pass blocked great and of course that’s to be expected or they wouldn’t dare put him in with Brady. The last time he fumbled was in college, I’m thinking his sophomore yr. That’s just crazy! Hopefully we’ll just get a great RB in the draft but if we get FA then I think he is a better choice than Bush and probably cheaper.
Bigcatdaddy - February 13, 2012 via Android app
I disagree completely
I saw him run through guys, over guys, and around guys. Benson doesn’t do any of those things.
indesignkat - February 13, 2012
Who? BJGE or Bush?
Bigcatdaddy - February 13, 2012 via Android app
BJGE
I watched him in the playoffs and was impressed. He’s never fumbled, he breaks tackles, and I saw him drag guys for extra yards a few times.
indesignkat - February 13, 2012
I think Nelson would be the most logical choice.
He was the 2nd best defensive player we had last year. I would even consider the Nelson the glue to our defense, so he is pretty important to Zimmer’s scheme. Teams general look to their own FA first before signing other FA from other teams. So I would have to go with Nelson and then at some point, we need to find him the best SS we can get.
AMAS85 - February 13, 2012
Maybe we can start to hear things moving now
Oregonbengalsfan - February 13, 2012
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