State of Bengals roster battles

The Bengals are heading into week two of the preseason with the Titans heading to Paul Brown Stadium for a matchup on Saturday night. Marvin Lewis recently said he could cut the team down to  sixty players, but that was before Cincinnati's 34-10 performance against the talented Falcons. The Bengals have a lot to look forward to in 2013, but the fringe players on the roster are going to have to make a difference for this team to win in the double digits out of their sixteen games. These are some of the roster battles that will take the next few weeks to discover who comes out on top.

Josh Johnson vs. John Skelton-Both backup quarterback candidates performed extremely well in the first preseason game. The Bengals' decision will have to come down to explosiveness versus consistency. Johnson has a chance to do well against first stringers on NFL defenses with his athletic skills and improvisational plays. Skelton doesn't do anything flashy, but he has won games with the Cardinals in the recent past and has a strong arm and the physical stature to earn supporters.

Daniel Herron vs. Rex Burkhead-As long as Burkhead continues to run hard in preseason games, the third down back spot will be his job for the 2013 season. Burkhead is Brian Leonard with more upside and better between the tackles explosiveness. Burkhead ran nine times for fifty-two yards against Atlanta while Herron rushed for less than four yards per carry. Herron can't make much of a difference in the offense, but his special teams skills will make him difficult to cut. Herron blocked two punts for the Bengals against Dallas and Philadelphia last season. Both Herron and Burkhead are tough minded football players that were stars of the Big Ten in the last few years.

Orson Charles vs. John Conner-Do the Bengals want a pass catcher or a blocker at the fullback spot?It depends on how much the team is really going to go with two tight ends in the offense. Charles is a good receiver but the experiment to use him as a lead blocker could end up haunting the team. Conner is nicknamed "the terminator" for a reason. He does a great job of punishing defenders between the tackles to open up holes. Conner is the safer option until Chris Pressley is healthy. Both players should make the team. Charles has the ability move back to tight end so Conner can take over as the primary lead blocker.

Sean Porter vs. Jayson DiManche and J.K. Schaffer-Everyone is on the Schaffer bandwagon after his play in the run game against the Falcons. Schaffer led the Bengals with six tackles against Atlanta. As good as Schaffer was in the game, his pass coverage was a little suspect and it seemed like he did miss a couple plays late in the game alongside the backups. Those miscues might not have been Schaffer's fault, however. DiManche is the most prominent UDFA the team brought in this year. The rookie had a sack and almost stripped the ball against Atlanta, but looks similar to James Harrison as he is primarily a pass rusher. It will be tough for DiManche to make the roster, but the Bengals would be glad to have him on the practice squad. Porter is probably the favorite to stick because of his draft position in the fourth round for the Bengals. He will have to make plays in the final three preseason games to beat out Schaffer though. Porter is pretty solid at everything but is not spectacular at anything, which might end up hurting him in the long run. 

Rich Hidy 

Cincy Sports Spot

Hard Knocks observations

Doesn't the opening episode of Hard Knocks bring excitement and anticipation for the football season? Last night's debut of the 2013 edition of the show featuring the Cincinnati Bengals packed a great deal of insights into the team and training camp in Cincinnati right from the get go. Training camp has only been occurring for a couple of weeks now, yet it seems like so much has happened with the team. The first show with the Bengals was probably better than any of the Dolphins Hard Knocks episodes last season. Everyone on this year's Bengals team seems unified and determined to reach the goals set forth by the coaching staff. The players seem to be bonding along the way, and their enthusiasm for the game is evident while watching.

-Hue Jackson is an extremely involved Associate Head Coach. His experience with the Raiders in the top job gives him credibility to influence the team almost as much as Marvin Lewis. The players genuinely like and respect Jackson, even jawing with him throughout practice. Jackson has the perspective of working with both the offense and defensive sides of the ball, and he has relationships with each of the Bengals' players. The show reveals Giovani Bernard as Jackson's golden child, and he rightly wants to keep his rookie playmaker healthy. Jackson is a charismatic speech maker and is now on the short list of assistants to watch for in interviews for potential head coaching positions at the end of the year. 

-Watch out for Jermaine Gresham. Not only did Gresham dominate the Oklahoma drill by pancaking star defensive tackle Geno Atkins, but his overall attitude this season seems to be me against the world. I don't care if Gresham may have jumped off the line early in that drill. Taking Geno Atkins to the ground is no small feat. The Bengals are expecting a great deal out of Gresham, who is getting less attention than Tyler Eifert in a contract year. Gresham is determined to rebound after a tough playoff game in 2012 and has a chance to break out as a top five tight end. 

-Gio Bernard is getting a lot of attention. Especially from his teammates on defense, who have seemed to target the diminutive running back in practices. Vontaze Burfict even joked that Bernard is like a tackling dummy. The Bengals have a fierce defense that is not afraid to bring the hammer, so Bernard is getting a crash course in the physicality of the NFL every day in practice. This is the best way for the rookie running back to develop an AFC North running style. Bernard seems like a genuinely nice person who is a great addition to the locker room. 

-The pursuit of excellence. I thought that was the best line of the entire show last night. Defensive Coordinator Mike Zimmer made it known to his defense that this team has expectations to win the Super Bowl. Jay Gruden said the same thing to his offense. The return of most of the successful players from last year along with an in tact coaching staff makes that dream a possibility. Zimmer's defense may have to carry the Bengals early on with new weapons impacting the lineup on offense such as Bernard, Tyler Eifert, and Orson Charles, but the team on paper is one of the three most talented rosters in football. 

-The emotions of the NFL were shown in the grimmest of ways towards the end of the episode with the season ending knee and ankle injuries of Larry Black. Black, according to Jay Hayes, had the potential to become a solid NFL nose tackle, and now he might not be back on the field for a year. The Bengals placed Black on the waived/IR list, but he will have an opportunity to rejoin the club and rehab for the future. The raw disappointment on Black's face was evident in the trainer's room during Hard Knocks. Black was sobbing after calling his parents to let them know about his injury. The NFL is a cutthroat business, and Black is smart enough to realize this might have been his only shot at the league. Black's teammates are behind him as Domata Peko spoke for everyone by saying Black is part of the Bengals family. Hopefully Black can successfully heal and reach his dream of playing in NFL games. 

Rich Hidy 

Cincy Sports Spot

Depth chart released--Insights on the offense

The Bengals released their first depth chart of the 2013 season this morning, and at first glance, it doesn't look like the listings of the starters on the chart will change too much from now until the first game of the season in September. There were a few surprises on the first depth chart, but nothing majorly out of the blue and nothing that couldn't be anticipated based on noting the happenings of training camp at this early juncture.

-Josh Johnson is the backup quarterback as things start to take shape. The man Jay Gruden specifically targeted to assist with the West Coast system this offseason has taken noticeably more snaps than John Skelton, and can open up specifically designed read option possibilities with the first team unit. Expect Skelton and Zac Robinson to get cut before the season begins.

-Even though Giovani Bernard is listed as the second string running back, he will almost assuredly pass Benjarvus Green-Ellis in carries as the season gets underway. Green-Ellis will take back the role he played so well in New England by fighting for tough yardage on second and third downs and serving as the primary goal line back. Bernard is the more electrifying of the two quality players, although he needs to work on breaking tackles and staying on his feet while being hit.

-The biggest surprise on the offensive side of the ball comes at fullback with Orson Charles grabbing the role as the starter. Charles is not a great blocker but can present blatant mismatches to defenses with his catching aptitude and H-back ment
ality. The Bengals may keep two fullbacks this season with Chris Pressley returning at some point. John Conner will need to develop a hard nosed edge in the preseason and retain the run blocking presence he showed with the Jets his rookie season.

-The offensive line features the same lineup as last season even with Andre Smith getting off to a slow start, and the tight end group has Jermaine Gresham and Tyler Eifert as the first and second options. Richard Quinn and Alex Smith will probably fight for a spot on the team. Quinn has the edge on the depth chart right now but Smith is the more versatile option because he can be a red zone target for Andy Dalton. Quinn has below average receiving skills but a superb blocking ability.

-Brandon Tate is ahead of Ryan Whalen and Cobi Hamilton on the depth chart right now. Hamilton may just be one of Marvin Lewis' typical late round rookies that is expected to prove his acumen for the game on the field. Mohamed Sanu and Marvin Jones were low on last season's depth chart at the beginning of the year, but they flashed brilliance in the preseason and quickly found the field. Tate may be the first string return man, but Hamilton will probably be the fifth receiver on the team.

Rich Hidy
Cincy Sports Spot