Imagining a team without Chad Ochenta y Cinco
by Bengals FTW on Jun 3, 2009 3:14 PM EDT
7 comments
It's not going to happen. I, personally, would love to see it. Chad's offseason antics antics are tiresome and are never about the team, only about himself. I will not deny that all appearances are that he is working hard on his conditioning and his game, but when the OC is putting an entirely new offense into place, your a$$ needs to be here. Every single repitition counts when it comes to a WR/ QB combo that relies on timing routes as much as Carson and Chad have in the past. Chad being in Los Angeles working on his training is not doing everything he can to help the team.
Now while I see no plausible way that Chad will not be wearing a Bengals jersey this season, I have been wondering what the team would look like without him and do we really need him? Are the Bengals deep enough at WR to perform well without him? So I thought I would do my best to break down what the Bengals would look like at WR without Ochenta y Cinco.
#1 receiver- Laveranues Coles- This is the only real choice for #1 in the world without Ochenta y Cinco. Henry has no proven reliability in the past and Caldwell and Simpson do not have enough time in the league. Coles has been a #1 WR before and at least had the speed to be a #1 in the past. However, when you stack up the career stas of Coles and Ochenta y Cinco next to each other, Coles numbers don't stack up. Before last year, Chad was on a 6 year streak of 1,000 yard seasons. Coles has had 3 in his career. Ochenta y Cinco has had a better QB thoughout most of his career, but the gaps are significant enough that Coles would not be as strong as Chad.
#2 receiver- Chris Henry- Even though he still has a long way to go before proving he can even be a #2, much less a #1, Henry takes this spot on pure talent alone. And if all the rumors are right about his work ethic and attitude changing, then it would be a beautiful thing to have Henry on the field at #2. The downgrade to Coles from Chad at #1 could be evened out by having a focused Henry at #2. If Henry were not here, the mere thought of no Chad and Caldwell or Simpson at #2 would have me asking to have to put up with Chad's crap all season long.
#3- Andre Caldwell/ Jerome Simpson- In this scenario, we would finally find out what these two have. I would imagine Caldwell being in when we need a 3rd down conversion or for short yardage passing plays. Simpson would come in as more of a downfield route runner because of his ability to make athletic catches. I would see this being very effective, sort of like a 1/2 punch at RB. Two different styles not allowing whoever is covering them to really get into a rythym. Once again, the talent of these two somewhat makes up for the downgrade of Chad to Coles.
After thinking through all this...... I have to say I will put up with Ochenta y Cinco for at least one more year. This season we can see how much gas Coles have left, see if Henry really got his act together and hopefully get to evalutate a liitle better what we have in Simpson and Caldwell.
I will say though, if Chad is working as hard as the recent reports from nfl.com and NFL network claim, I could be eating my words this season.
At least Ochenta y Cinco kept his mouth shut this year.
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Interesting the way
people tend to complain about Chad no matter what he is doing. This off season has been exactly what the team needed. Chad is working his butt off 99.9% of the time (from all reports) and only working his size 13 mouth .1% of the time. What a blessing for the team not to have to listen to his tiresome diatribe, and what a chance for the the young guys to get more reps and Coles to acclimate himself to a new team. I don’t know where you read that they are installing an entire new offensive system, I don’t think that is true. Chad will pick up any new plays in a heart beat and as far as getting reps with Carson, they are both pro bowl guys, it won’t take long. I really believe Chad will return to the pro bowl caliber receiver we all loved watching.
by Tommyboy45 on Jun 3, 2009 7:39 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
As Bengals FTW ...
… rightly points out, by Chad skipping team events (as he always does) it hurts the precise timing required to be an effective passing Offense. With the speed Defenses have these days, Offenses need the timing of a $25K Swiss watch. So, people complain about Chad because to Chad the world is just about Chad, which is theme and title to each chapter of his autobiography.
by Timzilla on Jun 4, 2009 6:14 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
In regards to the offense-
“The biggest thing I told Chad just the other day is with a lot of the new things we’re doing he’s going to have to play catch up,” Lewis said. “He’s excited about that and is working hard.”
It is obvious that Bratkowski has not changed his offense in awhile. When I can sit there and call out the shovel pass and be right 50% of the time, that’s just wrong. So if Brat is making changes, good. But I don’t care how many pro-bowls, super bowls or chili bowls you have, if they are making changes to the offense, be there.
And there is one way I would not complain about Chad- if he actually showed up to some OTA’s. You make it sound like Chad will just walk in the door at training camp and start cathcing balls in stride. On MULTIPLE occasions over the last couple of years, Chad and Carson’s timing has been horribly and blatantly off.
Now I admit, I am old school. In my opinion, if you have a problem, you go to your coaches office, knock on the door and sit down and talk about it. You DO NOT run to the media and start complaining about the organization that has already ripped up contracts for you and gave you more money before your contract was up. If you don’t get your way, you man the f#$% up and go out and play hard. You do not wait until the START of training camp to get a surgery you could have had done over the summer.
Chad plays the game for what it brings to him. Not for what he can help bring to a team.
It's still a good season if we go 2-14 and beat the Steelers twice.
by Bengals FTW on Jun 3, 2009 9:20 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I agree about Chad 100%
However, I also agree that Predictable Brat is an issue and have no freakin clue why he’s still the OC. But, we’re stuck with both of them for another season.
They lynchpin in my mind is going to be Carson. Not just because the guy can throw the rock, but because he has the ability to lead and he’s the QB for God’s sake, so make some audibles.
“Hmm…looks like the D is prediciting Shovel Pass. Brat sent in a shovel pass. Maybe I should CHANGE THE PLAY.”
by UpStateMike on Jun 4, 2009 5:45 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
The Truth about Chad
Let’s face it, when the Bengals lose, the fans are going to turn first to the biggest mouth in the organization: Chad Johnson. The guy is still a good receiver and last year’s debacle really had nothing to do with him. His number’s were a result of Fitz’s lack of ability to throw the deep ball, Ocho’s specialty. His antics were a symptom of the Bengals losses, it wasn’t the problem itself. When they were winning, they called him funny, and when they were losing they called him distracting. As I’ve said before Chad is not a TO type guy or even a Cutler type guy. I don’t think he’s destroying the team chemistry like some people think. Losing is what was destroying team chemistry. I see Chad more like a barometer to the teams forecast.
This is our year!
by Carsonorbust on Jun 4, 2009 8:30 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
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