Bengals Bytes (2/26): Golden Mess

Quick hits: Tobin endorses Tez, hopes to re-sign Adam Jones; Zim on Bengals tree
INDIANAPOLIS - Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin endorsed linebacker Vontaze Burfict and expressed the club’s desire to re-sign cornerback Adam Jones during his Thursday media availability.

Bengals Duke Tobin speaks on Vontaze Burfict, Pacman Jones
With Cincinnati Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis ducking the podium at the NFL Scouting Combine this year, director of player personnel Duke Tobin made his public speaking debut this morning at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Cincinnati Bengals coordinator Ken Zampese at the Combine
You don’t need a crystal ball or deck of Tarot cards to know what the future of free agency holds for the Cincinnati Bengals, or what position first-year offensive coordinator Ken Zampese is focusing on at the NFL Scouting Combine this week.

Cincinnati Bengals exec Vontaze Burfict helped team win more than lose
The Cincinnati Bengals' front office harbors no hard feelings toward linebacker Vontaze Burfict, as director of player personnel Duke Tobin made it clear at the combine Thursday that neither he nor the team blames the defender for the collapse that precipitated the Bengals' wild-card round loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Is Duke Tobin's 15 minutes of combine fame signaling a Bengals change?
Moments after walking to the podium for the first time in the more than 20 NFL combines he has attended as a team employee, Duke Tobin made it clear that his presence before reporters had very little effect on the machinations inside the Cincinnati Bengals' front office. Marvin Lewis is still the team's head coach. And Tobin remains its valued behind-the-scenes roster chief.

Bengals seek retention
A few days ago the NFL twitter sphere mused that the Bengals’ draft process is wrapped in mystery. On Thursday at the NFL scouting combine director of player personnel Duke Tobin didn’t exactly solve what is an enigma to those that want only a draft room strong man instead of a democracy. But in his national media debut he did shed some light on a process that many believe has built the strongest roster in the NFL with Tobin greasing the gears of Bengals president Mike Brown and head coach Marvin Lewis. It is a melting pot draft room filled with scouts, coaches, and management.

Receivers on the mind for Bengals
The Bengals have A.J. Green. They love A.J. Green. He’ll be playing at Paul Brown Stadium for the foreseeable future. Beyond that, the Bengals don’t know what they have at the receiver position right now. Check that. Actually, they do. They have a combined five career receptions and zero starts.

Cincinnati Bengals hope WR duo can replace Marvin Jones, Mohamed Sanu
What does running the 40-yard dash in 4.27 seconds get a football players who's fresh out of college? If his name is Mario Alford, it's an NFL contract and immediately inflated expectations.

Hue Jackson's mission with Browns? Copy Marvin Lewis, but quicker
As he begins his second stint as an NFL head coach, Hue Jackson said at the NFL combine Wednesday that his mission as the Cleveland Browns' coach is in part to replicate much of what his old boss, Marvin Lewis, did when he first started coaching the Cincinnati Bengals. Three years into the job in Cincinnati, Lewis took a franchise that hadn't had a winning season across the 12 that preceded his arrival and turned it into a playoff team.

Random Bytes

Rams narrowing down options for new headquarters in Los Angeles
The Rams are narrowing down options for a new headquarters in LA. A source told FOXSports.com that the Thousand Oaks and Westlake Village areas are now the franchise's main area of focus. A final decision should come within the next few weeks.

Jared Goff, Carson Wentz in friendly QB battle before NFL Draft
Although a lot of time remains in the scouting process, the first two quarterbacks expected to be drafted are California's Jared Goff and North Dakota State's Carson Wentz. Goff and Wentz have developed a friendly rivalry while working out together at the Asics Sports Performance Center in Irvine, Calif. They are represented by Ryan Toller of Rep1 Sports.

Mike Tanier's Combine Notebook, Day 2: QB Prospects Tackle Tough Questions
The Texans and Hackenberg, Sittin' in a tree,      K-I-S-S-I-N-G Many of the top quarterback prospects for this year's draft spoke to the media at the NFL Scouting Combine on Thursday, which naturally turned the press pool into a bunch of matchmaking busybodies.

Sources: RB Martin more likely to sign deal outside of Tampa Bay
Buccaneers running back Doug Martin has made no secret of his desire to sign a new contract that will allow him to return to Tampa Bay for the 2016 season and beyond. But as contract negotiations between the would-be free agent and the Bucs drag on, the chances of the two-time Pro Bowler getting his wish appear to be declining. Based on the current pace and direction of the talks, Martin is more likely to sign a deal with one of a handful of Bucs rivals than with Tampa Bay, sources close to the negotiations said Thursday.

Tom Brady Reenacts Lion King's 'Circle of Life' Scene with New Puppy
Tom Brady seems to understand what "Hakuna Matata" is all about. On Thursday, the New England Patriots quarterback reenacted the iconic "Circle of Life" scene from The Lion King with his new puppy, Fluffy.

Manziel assault case findings sent to district attorney
Dallas police have concluded their domestic violence assault investigation of Johnny Manziel and have submitted their findings to the Dallas County District Attorney for presentation to a grand jury, which will determine whether the Cleveland Browns quarterback will be charged.

Jared Goff of Cal scoffs at critics who say hand size will affect his NFL draft stock
You have to hand it to Jared Goff: He can roll with the scrutiny. Goff, the former Cal quarterback rated as one of this year's top draft prospects, sneered, scoffed and grimaced at the latest predraft chatter that small hands might hurt his stock. Goff measured in at 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds with 9-inch hands, a size that drew gasps from draftniks.

Colin Kaepernick of San Francisco 49ers requests trade, sources say
While new San Francisco 49ers coach Chip Kelly gave the impression Thursday that Colin Kaepernick wants to return to the team, sources told ESPN's Adam Caplan that Kaepernick's agents have requested permission from the team to seek a trade. NFL Network first reported the trade request.