| 12 August 2010
I am especially excited about Atkins who is kind of like an undersized Warren Sapp. He is strong, very quick and has a knack for making plays in the backfield and near the line of scrimmage. Man did he flash against the Cowboys. It was a poor game overall for the team, but Atkins was clearly was one of the few bright spots.
Same deal for Shipley who looks like he's going to be a solid slot receiver for years to come. And thanks to the Bengals' abundance of depth at WR, they won't need to rush him. If he's ready right away, fine. If he's not, they have other guys that can get the job done in the slot like Andre Caldwell. And if Antonio Bryant returns healthy, he can play the slot in three-wide sets (with Chad Ochocinco and Terrell Owens on the outside).
It's way too early to tell one way or the other on first-round tight end Jermaine Gresham, but it does sound like the practice reports have been more positive than negative. I am not convinced Reggie Kelly can come back from a ruptured Achilles at his age - even for young players that is sometimes a career-ender - so Gresham will likely be the starter this year. Even Marvin Lewis has listed him as the first-team tight end, which surprised me a bit. Wow, Lewis is all over the map when it comes to the way he does things. You would think he would at least pretend like he's making Gresham earn the spot. However, part of me likes it because it's no secret the Bengals need the Oklahoma product to step up right away and become a weapon for Carson Palmer over the middle. His athleticism is very impressive and word is he has very good hands as well. He was shut out against the Cowboys, but it will be interesting to see how he looks during the remainder of the preseason.
And who knows, maybe there is the chance that the light will come on for Chase Coffman and he will make the team as the No. 3 TE this year. He had a nice catch against the Cowboys. However, would the Bengals go into the season with two receiving tight ends (Gresham and Coffman) and just one blocking TE (Kelly)? That is the question. For some reason, they like former undrafted free agent Dan Coats who wasn't even a starter in college at BYU. He has hands of stone. However, in all fairness, he is a good blocker and he might make the team just based on that. But that would mean cutting Coffman, and I find it hard to believe that will happen considering he was a third-round pick last year. They gave Jerome Simpson two full years just to make sure (I think he'll get cut this camp) and they'll probably do the same with Coffman. However, Coats might also be able to help out at the depleted fullback position, so that will help him in his bid for the No. 3 TE gig.
* As for second-round DE Carlos Dunlap, I'd say it's too early to tell about him as well. I liked the pick very much and he's big and versatile enough to slide down to DT in passing situations, but the jury is still out on the talented Florida product.
* The Bengals' "other" third-round pick -- cornerback Brandon Ghee -- is a player I think will be solid for years to come. It seems Shipley is getting most of the pub, but Ghee was a good pick as well. I actually thought he would be the team's No. 3 corner from day one, but it looks like Adam "Don't Call Me Pacman" Jones is the early favorite there. I find that very surprising since Jones looked like absolute garbage during his last year in the NFL: 2008. But Ghee is still going to get playing time this year as the No. 4 corner at worst. Where does that leave David Jones and Morgan Trent? Well, one of them is going to get cut. It's that simple.
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