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Bengals Bytes (5/21): Recipe for success

Marvin Lewis and the Bengals have written a decent recipe to succeed in the NFL, and his former coaches seem to be borrowing it. A look at the jerseys no one wants to admit they have, and which players are the most hated in the NFL?

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Bengals' tryout players endure suspense for their shot
Trip Thurman packed one bag of clothes and a backup plan. The 6-foot-5, 307-pound offensive lineman arrived in Cincinnati the weekend after the draft for rookie mini-camp knowing zero guarantees exist in his three-day tryout beyond renting the No. 67 jersey for a few days.

With discipline a focus, Cincinnati Bengals should revive 2008
Anyone who follows the Cincinnati Bengals knows the value the team's defense places on statistics relative to scoring defense. Forget total defense rankings, which are based on yards allowed, coordinator Paul Guenther has said. To him, it's all about keeping the opposing offense off the scoreboard. That approach paid off in 2015, when the Bengals ranked second in scoring defense, trailing Seattle by an average of 0.1 points per game.

Just like draft night, Steelers' Artie Burns waits on William Jackson
Let's say this out loud: No, the Cincinnati Bengals didn't draft Houston cornerback William Jackson III just to dig the Pittsburgh Steelers, who heavily scouted Jackson and needed pass-coverage help. Was it sweet for Cincinnati to take a Pittsburgh target one selection before the Steelers were up at No. 25 overall? Absolutely. Best believe the Bengals probably joked about this internally.

Lewis pays it forward
They’ve always said the NFL is a copycat league. If Coach X succeeds, Coach O is certain to be just around the corner to borrow a cup or two of whatever the recipe is stirring the success. Just look at this weekend’s 13th annual Marvin Lewis Golf Classic, the Masters of charitable giving in the Cincinnati area. It’s so big it needs two days and three NFL head coaches and on Saturday night at its slick and chic pre-tournament V.I.P. party at the Montgomery Inn Boathouse, Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer is going to stop by with Browns head coach Hue Jackson.

Cincinnati Bengals: Good, Bad and More for 2016
Now it’s time to take a closer look at the very-talented Cincinnati Bengals. Five straight trips to the playoffs (and counting) but this franchise still hasn’t won a postseason game since 1990. Every organization has both its positives and negatives heading into any season. Enclosed is a concise reminder of that, while we will be offering up some interesting statistics as well.

Random Bytes

The most embarrassing jersey to own for every NFL team
We've all made a regretful purchase.

Washington Post Poll Finds Redskins Name Doesn't Offend 9 in 10 Native Americans
Results of a Washington Post poll released Thursday showed 90 percent of Native Americans asked weren't bothered by the Washington Redskins' team nickname. On Friday, the Native American Journalists Association responded to the poll.

Joey Bosa was in Chargers' plans since Fiesta Bowl
The San Diego Chargers made rubbish of four months' worth of mock drafts when they threw a curve ball at the rest of the NFL with the selection of Ohio State pass rusher Joey Bosa at No. 3 overall. As it turns out, the Bolts had been eyeing Bosa since last season -- when they assumed they had no shot at the best defensive player in the country. Ricky Henne of the team's official website compiled a fascinating oral history of the Bosa pick, going back to scouting process of 2015.

Tom Brady lands in top five most hated NFL players of all time
If you love Tom Brady, you really love him. And if you hate Tom Brady, you apparently really hate him. Brady has landed at No. 5 on the list of the most hated NFL players. It’s a list not only of the players who currently are in the game, but also of all players who ever played the game.

Hue Jackson likes what he sees in his old QB, Terrelle Pryor
In 2011, when Hue Jackson was head coach of the Raiders, the team used a third-round supplemental draft pick on Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor. As a rookie Pryor barely played, and Jackson was fired at the end of the season.

Matthew Stafford doesn’t think Calvin Johnson’s ever coming back
While Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson walking away from football at the age of 30 surprised many people, his quarterback wasn’t among them. During an interview with WJR-AM, Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford said he had a suspicion Johnson was leaning that way, and didn’t expect him to reverse course and reconsider now.