Many rip the Bengals for drafting Jerome Simpson over DeSean Jackson. I've made the argument that not even Jackson could have acquired that much playing time with Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh the un-seated starters, with an offense that limited their spread sets in an effort to max-protect Ryan Fitzpatrick. However, if there's a time for him to be fully judged, it's this year. And it would seem that Simpson knows this.
During his workouts in California with Andre Caldwell, Antonio Chatman and Carson Palmer, Simpson says that he's "more of a technician in my routes."
For now, Simpson is focused on getting better. He relished learning from Ocho Cinco as well as the departed Houshmandzadeh, who signed with the Seahawks.
“I learned a lot from T.J.,” Simpson said. “I learned a lot of patience, being detailed with your routes. I said I’m going to get with him in the offseason in the seasons to come. He’s a great leader. He’s always on time. He stays late.”
Simpson's offseason work has started early, and he believes he already is seeing results.
“When you don’t really know the system, you kind of second-guess yourself,” he said. “I’m getting confidence in my game now.”