Bengals Bites (5/13)

CINCINNATI: Bengals look for well-rounded running backs | NFL Football | The State
LSU's Jeremy Hill watches other running backs and knows their value, even as they become a lesser commodity in the NFL draft.

Behind the numbers: The Bengals' draft - Cincinnati Bengals Blog - ESPN
23.4: Percentage of passes 15 yards or longer that Michigan State's "No Fly Zone" secondary allowed opponents to complete last season. That number was the best among automatic qualifying conference schools.

Bengals release backup QB Josh Johnson | FOX Sports on MSN

The Bengals released backup quarterback Josh Johnson on Monday, two days after they took Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron in the fifth round of the draft.

AJ McCarron is finally saying the right things ... well, more or less - Los Angeles Times

AJ McCarron might have come off as a bit arrogant before last week's NFL draft, predicting that he would be picked somewhere in the first or early in the second round. Well, that didn't quite happen. The former Alabama quarterback slipped all the way to the fifth round, finally going to Cincinnati with the 164th overall pick.

Bengals QB AJ McCarron: 'I wasn't healthy at Alabama' - NFL - Sporting News

If NFL Draft prospects were evaluated solely based on winning, former Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron may have gone No. 1 overall — The Crimson Tide won 34 of their 36 games with McCarron as the starter.

Bengal Quick Takes: Cincy's on the run - Cincinnati Bengals Blog - ESPN

Through its eight-player draft class, Cincinnati showed how serious it was about having a more physical offense was. Half the Bengals' picks were offensive players, but two players in particular should contribute to the renewed focus on rushing that new offensive coordinator Hue Jackson has promised to bring. Other anticipated undrafted free agency additions make that even more evident.

Cincinnati Bengals’ offensive coordinator: ‘Andy Dalton is our quarterback’

Sweeping conclusions are par for the course with any NFL Draft, and this year was no exception.  Among the many that have been made since the weekend is that Andy Dalton’s job as the Cincinnati Bengals’ starting quarterback is in jeopardy because the team made former Alabama star A.J. McCarron a fifth-round draft pick on Saturday.

Oddsmaker: Broncos, Patriots, Packers heaviest divisional favorites | ProFootballTalk

AFC North Bengals: 8-to-5. Ravens: 9-to-4. Steelers: 9-to-4. Browns: 6-to-1.

Browns’ owner says Johnny Manziel is a backup | ProFootballTalk

The starting quarterback job in Cleveland will not be handed to Johnny Manziel. Browns owner Jimmy Haslam said today that the Browns coach Mike Pettine has told Johnny Manziel to start acting "like a backup quarterback.