Bernard Scott, RB, Cincinnati Bengals: 2010 NFL Fantasy Football Gold

Everybody loves a good under the radar fantasy pick.

Each year an unheralded player becomes a household name after a few weeks of double-digit fantasy points.

The Bengals have one on their hands this year in 26-year-old Bernard Scott.

The AFC North is not a pretty division. All four teams traditionally win with a strong defense and a solid running game.

It took the Bengals awhile to realize this. Finally in '09, they figured it out. Starting running back Cedric Benson received the rock early and often in the 13 games he played.

301 carries and 1,251 yards were career highs for the former top five pick. There were games in which he would almost reach 40 carries.

Benson has already shown in three preseason games that he is poised to repeat that performance. Without a doubt he is the starter for the Bengals. Yet the physicality of the division requires each team to have solid back-ups in the running game.

Benson missed three games last year with a hip issue and you can expect him to get banged up once again against the likes of New England, San Diego, New Orleans, and Indy—not to mention the teams in the AFC North.

Overlooking his backup would be a huge fantasy blunder. Scott is entering his second year out of Division II Abilene Christian. He set all kinds of records in college yet dropped all the way to the sixth round (209th overall) of the '09 draft due to dreaded "character issues."

The Bengals noticed his problems occurred in the early years of his college career. In his final two seasons he was a model citizen.

As a sixth round pick with a chip on his shoulder, Scott emerged as the clear-cut second string back right off the bat. Most would consider his first year a success. He had 321 yards on 74 attempts, good enough for a 4.3 yards per carry. Filling in for Benson against the Raiders underrated defense, he ran for 119 yards, including a 61-yard gallop.

He also began to return kickoffs, taking one to the house against the Steelers in Pittsburgh. That touchdown ended up being the difference in a 18-12 Bengals victory.

He ended up with a 31.5-yard average on 16 returns. Expect a similar role for him this season. He has been returning kicks in each of the first three preseason games.

The 5'10", 197 pound Texas native has break away speed and can be very hard to tackle. He has great elusiveness and holds onto the ball. He didn't lose a single fumble in his rookie season.

Offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski admits he hasn’t had a back as explosive catching the ball out of the backfield in his 10 seasons here.

“No question he’s the kind of guy you want to put the ball in his hands,” Bratkowski says. “You can use him in the slot; you can do some different things with him.”

The ability to break off a long run is extremely appealing for a second string back. The versatility of Scott leads one to believe the Bengals will get this guy on the field in one form or another.

“If I have the ball in my hands, I feel like I can make a big play and help the team,” Scott says. “If they want to put me in the slot, and throw me a couple balls out of the backfield, that’s fine, too. We did a little bit of that (this spring) in camp. Now that I’m more familiar with the offense, I think they’ve got the confidence that I know what I’m doing and they can use me doing more things.”

While you shouldn’t use a top pick on Scott, a mid-draft selection of the underrated back will look make you look like a fantasy genius before the 2010 campaign is over. You have been warned.

Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals Need to Air It Out Sooner or Later

OK, we get it, Marvin: the 2009 Cincinnati Bengals want to establish the running game.

You have proven to the entire league that the four-headed monster that is Cedric Benson, Bernard Scott, Larry Johnson, and Brian Leonard can run, jump, juke and spin around opponents.

Fans are beginning to wonder if QB Carson Palmer is even the key to success anymore.

While the pass happy magical-turned-nightmarish 2005 is a distant memory, the key to winning is the same. Palmer was a Pro Bowler that year, had a fantasy player's dream of a stat line.

Now he is tucking the ball and running at a career-best rate. Everybody is getting in on the running game it seems.

Palmer hasn't thrown for over 300 yards going back to the 2007 season. He threw for 110 yards against the freakin' Browns last week. What is the deal with Palmer, has he lost his skills?

Not quite...

Palmer is one of the top seven or eight QBs in the NFL. He is forgotten by the national media because of the flashy, yet overrated young guns like Matt Ryan, Jay Cutler, and Tony Romo.

This season he hasn't been asked to carry the team until the end of games. When he does throw, it has been screens, slants, and curls. Long bombs have been harder to find than a believable Tiger Woods excuse.

This has nothing to do with Palmer's arm strength or accuracy. It’s the lack of a deep threat (Chris Henry on IR hurts bad) as well as the overall offensive philosophy that has changed.

Why not have Palmer sit back in the pocket that extra two-to-three seconds and wait for the deep ball?

The Bengals are well aware that No. 9 going down also means the team goes down. He is the one guy that can't get hurt. They already had two scares this season with his health.

In a "here we go again" moment, Palmer sprained his ankle in the first game of the preseason and didn't play again till Week One after missing 12 games last year. In October, Palmer sprained his non-throwing hand, having to wear a protective glove and hand-off with his throwing hand ever since.

So, naturally, Bengal fans are concerned for his health. But concerned with the 29-year old's ability? No way.

Remember earlier in the season when the Bengals earned the nickname "the Cardiac Cats"? They made a habit of demoralizing the opponent with a last second scoring drive.

Palmer drove the length of the field to beat the Broncos with 17 seconds left (until the immaculate deflection).

He conducted a clock devouring six-minute drive that culminated in a TD and a win with 20 seconds to go against Pittsburgh. He had a 15-yard scamper setting up a field goal on a fourth down in overtime against the Browns that prevented a tie, and he marched down the field against Baltimore in the final minute as well.

Coach Marvin Lewis understands this. He knows what Palmer is capable of. That's why he is protecting him so much. But as the NFL schedule hits Week 13, it's time to go deep.

Enter the Detroit Lions.

The Lions will visit Paul Brown this Sunday sporting the 31st-ranked passing defense. They rarely pressure the QB and have an extremely mediocre secondary.

This is the game where Palmer can dial up some bombs to Chad or some deep slants to Coles. They need to put up 21 by halftime, to show the Lions (and more importantly the rest of the NFL) that they are more than a running team. Open up the floodgates early to quiet the offensive doubters.

Aside from the 45-point Bears explosion, the offense has put up a measly 17, 18, 17, and 16 points. But they won three out of four.

Sunday needs to be the day to take advantage of the matchups and make a statement, not to mention the importance of keeping the one and only Chad Ochocinco interested. You know deep down he is fuming over the pedestrian numbers being put up. The last thing the Bengals need is a late season Chad concern.

I have a feeling this won't be the case since coach Lewis brought in his new toy, Larry Johnson.

He is saving the majority of the playbook for the Vikings and Chargers in back-to-back road games following Sunday. Lewis understands the significance of those two games, and the insignificance of the Lions game.

Be prepared to complain about the offense for another week Bengals fans. But when they travel to the Metrodome to play the Vikings, I’ll expect the offense to finally have the training wheels taken off.

Maybe a basic game plan can still yield 28 against the Lions, or it will be another 16-7 yawner.

Bengals Run Over Hapless Browns

The Cincinnati Bengals played the ball control game as they ran down the Cleveland Browns throats in a 16-7 workman like victory. The Bengals held the ball for just over 38 minutes as they rushed for 210 yards on the ground.

The Browns were simply unable to stop the Bengals two-headed rushing attack of Larry Johnson and Bernard Scott. With Cedric Benson out for the second straight game with a hip injury, the team continued to impose its will in the running game. Johnson had 22 carries for 107 yards; Scott had 87 yards on 18 carries.

The stellar play of the Benglas defense continued Sunday. An overmatched Brady Quinn looked awful, going 15/34 for 100 yards. That’s a 51.3 QB rating. He threw behind several receivers. His passes too often were at the shoelaces. A couple of times, he threw downfield between two receivers—but the pass was so bad, that it was hard to know who the intended receiver was.

Quinn wasn’t even pressured much by the Bengals front four, but the pass coverage was once again top notch. The linebackers were all over the field, especially Brandon Johnson and his eight tackles. The Browns finished with only 58 yards on the ground and 169 total.

Overall the game plan was incredibly vanilla. The Bengals had zero trick plays and lots of runs between the tackles. No reason to empty the play book in a game like this.

"There are no tosses or loop-di-loop plays. It's basically, `Line up and go after it,' " Johnson said.

Punter Kevin Huber was able to keep the ball out of Josh Cribbs on punt returns and he barely touched the ball at all. Although he did throw an 18 yard bomb to Quinn that was the second biggest offense play all day for the Browns.

The Browns defense knew what was coming but simply couldn’t do anything about it. Carson Palmer had a pedestrian 110 yards, completing 13 of 24 passes with a touchdown. He didn’t have an exceptionally accurate day. He has gone 15 straight games without having a 300-yard passing day. He only has two TD tosses in the past four games.

Palmer has really adapted to the “game manger” role in this offense. He doesn’t have to do it all for the Bengals to have a chance. He continues to take care of the ball and be the leader on offense.

"It felt like a bad-weather game," said Palmer. "It was just a physical, run the ball, control the field position and feed off the defense game."

Past concerns did arise during the game. The team is averaging around 18 points a game minus the Bears 45 point explosion. The offense is settling for field goals and getting killed by penalties. An infuriating 10 penalties for 75 yards continually killed momentum on drives.

The main culprits were the offensive line—too many holding penalties. The pass protection was below average as well. As great as the run blocking was, the pass blocking was pretty awful. Palmer was sacked three times and hurried throughout the game.

Chad Ochocinco (three receptions for 38 yards) is still playing at a high level, but if teams take him away, Palmer is struggling find other receivers. Partly because they are not getting open, and also because he is getting hit before he can get to that second or third read.

So what does it all mean? Well 8-3 is 8-3. A perfect 6-0 divisional sweep for the first time in franchise history is a tremendous achievement. But there are still things that need to be cleaned up.

CBS Sports analyst Boomer Esiason said it perfectly after the game. Maybe it’s a good thing that the Bengals haven’t hit on all cylinders yet. They are doing what needs to be done in order to win the game. Maybe they’re saving the best for December and January.

"If we can run the football and play good defense, I can drive into the stadium pretty confident most days, and that's a good feeling," coach Marvin Lewis said. "I think we are at that point."

Larry Johnson Signed by Bengals for Stretch Run

The "redeemer" strikes again.

The Cincinnati Bengals have signed former Kansas City RB Larry Johnson.

After being released by the Kansas City Chiefs two weeks ago, Johnson was left jobless. He cleared waivers, meaning every team had a chance to grab him and all declined.

From leading rusher to leading a rush to the unemployment line: a humbling experience for a guy that needed just that.

Bengals owner Mike Brown has been nicknamed the "redeemer" in Cincinnati for giving troubled players a second chance (or fifth, for Chris Henry) to be an NFL player. The theory is that a lot of these players have plenty of talent left in them, plus they are as cheap as can be.

Johnson's contract is prorated for the league minimum for the rest of the year. Not bad for a guy that was only 70 or so yards away from being the Chiefs' all-time leading rusher.

But if the Chiefs paid $2.1 million for Johnson to stay away, how much does he have left in the tank?

The Bengals got a steal when they scrapped Cedric Benson off the trash heap. Everybody passed on him till the Bengals signed him during Week Five of the 2008 season. This year he is in the top five in rushing yards with 859 to go along with six TDs.

So why would the Bengals need this guy if they have a top rusher like Benson?

It is nothing more than, in coach Marvin Lewis' words, "a insurance policy." Benson is at 205 carries and is on pace for the seventh most in league history. He is entering uncharted waters, as his career high is only 214. He suffered a hip flexor against the Steelers and is listed as questionable for Sunday's game at Oakland.

Lewis said during his Monday press conference that Johnson would be the fourth running back and that the role of the three backs on the roster would be the same.

“It would have zero affect on Cedric Benson, Bernard Scott, or Brian Leonard,” Lewis said. “I’m very happy right now with what they’re doing and their roles, and I want to see Bernard’s role continue to expand as it did yesterday (Sunday).”

Johnson will be limited in practice and evaluated throughout the week as the club prepares for its trip to Oakland.

Lewis said he will be expected to do all the things a fourth running back is supposed to do, such as special teams. Not sure if Johnson will be okay with that for more than a few weeks. But after eating an extra large piece of humble pie, maybe he has gained a new perspective.

In the end, it is a low risk, high reward move for the Bengals. The locker room is finally strong enough for Johnson to just slide in and do his job. The veterans will not allow him to pull any of the crap he did in Kansas City.

He might not have any gas left in the tank, but it's worth a shot. He had a few outstanding years in KC, and now the Bengals are extremely deep at running back.

He will also come in handy as the temperatures drops and his physical style of play and ball protection will be needed. The NFL is a long and grueling season, and I have no problem with the Bengals going out and making a move to ensure they don't sputter down the stretch.

Oh, and by the way...the Chiefs make a visit to Cincinnati on Dec. 27. I wonder if Johnson has already circled that one on the calendar. Maybe he can pull a Benson and destroy his former team and exact some sweet revenge.

The Cincinnati Bengals Physicality Punishes Pittsburgh Steelers

Are you a believer yet?

The bandwagon is filling up with fans at a feverish pace.

The Cincinnati Bengals went into Pittsburgh and came out with a hard fought, tough as nails 18-12 victory. Neither team scored an offensive touchdown in what turned out to be a battle of the trenches. Usually the Steelers win the physical match-up, but not against this Bengals team.

''That's probably the most grinding football game I ever experienced,'' Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said after the game. The Bengals were able to punish the Ravens and Steelers on back-to-back weeks and beat them at their game.

The D was able to get consistent pressure on QB Ben Roethlisberger. He came into the game tied for first in the NFL with a completion rate of 70.6 percent, but he was 20/40 on Sunday with an INT. He rarely seemed comfortable in the pocket.

DE Jonathan Fanene had six tackles with two being for losses, two sacks, two QB hits and a pass deflection. DE Frostee Rucker was able to intercept a tipped pass that set up a field goal. For the game the Bengals were able to take down Big Ben four times.

Every time the Steelers got into the red-zone, the Bengals D got stingy. Pittsburgh could only muster four Jeff Reed field goals. Once again the stellar secondary led by Leon Hall, and Jonathan Joseph were able to shut down WR Hines Ward (26 yards) and rookie WR Mike Wallace (16 yards). That was big considering both had big games in the first match-up.

''They're clearly the best team in the division,'' Pittsburgh safety Ryan Clark said. ''I'd give my left arm to play them again.''

Offensively the Bengals didn’t set any records by any stretch. It was a lot of short slant routes and runs up the gut. QB Carson Palmer was 18/30 for 178 yards and didn’t have a turnover. In fact the team was turnover free.

RB Bernard Scott came in to replace the injured Cedric Benson and finished with 33 yards. As a team the Cincinnati only gained 61 yards on the ground.

But Scott proved coach Lewis right when he inserted him as the new kick-off returner He took a first quarter kick 96 yards for the only TD of the game. What a way to start off in your new role.

The biggest issue facing Cincinnati now is the health of Benson, who left the game with a hip injury. If Benson's injury were serious, that would be a big loss for the Bengals. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that he is expected to play next week at Oakland. There have been rumors linking free agent Larry Johnson to the Bengals even before Bensons injury. This story will gain more steam as the week progresses.

The Steelers were without star safety Troy Polamalu for all but the opening series as he aggravated the left knee injury that previously sidelined him for four games. He underwent an MRI exam, but there was no immediate word about his status.

By sweeping the season series for the first time since 1998, the Bengals effectively lead Pittsburgh by two games because they own the tiebreaker and, for the first time in their history, a 5-0 division record.

''In the past, we would lose games like this,'' center Kyle Cook said.

Cincinnati ate up much of the clock in the final seven minutes, culminating in a 43 yard Shayne Graham field goal. The Steelers got the ball back with slightly less than two minutes to play, but Roethlisberger threw incomplete on four consecutive downs from the 33, and it was over.

"This was a statement game," Cincinnati safety Chris Crocker said. "Beat Pittsburgh two times. Beat Baltimore two times. Now everyone [in the AFC North] is looking at us from behind."

So what did we learn today class?

1.) The Bengals beat the Super Bowl champs without big days from their two biggest offensive weapons. Benson had 22 yards on seven carries before leaving the game and Chad OchoCinco only had two receptions for 29 yards.

2.) The Steelers offensive line struggled against the front four of the Bengals D. Rashard Mendenhall was held to 36 yards and the pressure on Ben was there all game long.

3.) Carson Palmer didn’t have a great game and his team still won. Usually the Bengals live and die by the play of the franchise QB. He was high on a multiple throws and put a little too much mustard on a few as well. But he played the game manger role and was able to keep the Steelers off balance even without a great effort in the running game.

4.) Willie Parker is done in black and gold. One carry for seven yards? No way he is a Steeler in 2010.

5.) The Bengals are for real, for real. Talking heads on T.V, and radio were all predicting a Pittsburgh win. Even Vegas still didn’t believe in them. After being favored to lose by three AT HOME against Baltimore, the Bengals were once again favored to lose, this time by seven.

6.) The Bengals are a perfect 4-0 on the road this season, with wins at Lambeau Field, Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium and the Big Ketchup Bottle in Pittsburgh.

7.) With a AFC North crown in clear view; the goal shifts to play-off positioning. This team has a real shot of finishing in the top two and earning a coveted bye in the play-offs. Who wudda thunk it after that week one miracle tip loss against Denver? The Cincinnati Bengals are 7-2 and the bandwagon is getting bigger by the day.

I’ll leave you with the quote of the game courtesy of LB Brandon Johnson, whom filled in nicely for injured starter Keith Rivers.

“I’m almost diabetic right now it’s so sweet. I’m so excited right now I can barely contain myself.”

Cincinnati Bengals: The Cardiac Cats Raise City’s Collective Blood Pressure

What a five game stretch for the 2009 Bengals.

Every game has been decided in the final 60 seconds and the feeling of excruciating defeat and astonishing victory has been felt weekly. These Bengals don’t do anything easily, but 4-1 is 4-1. 3-0 on the road and 3-0 in the division are numbers that can’t be ignored.

Quick recap: crushing loss to Denver on a fluke tip after the Bengals drove the length of the field to go ahead with 20 or so seconds remaining, QB Aaron Rodgers runs out of time on a possible game tying drive in Green Bay.

Two game winning last second TD’s from QB Carson Palmer to WR Andre Caldwell over divisional powers Pittsburgh and Baltimore sandwiched between a should have been game winning last second drive at Cleveland that was forced to OT due to the errand snap on the extra point. The game was later won by another solid Palmer led drive in OT.

Callers to Cincinnati sports radio have been complaining of high blood pressure all week. The Cardiac Cats are doing wonders for doctors in the region. Each week the offense shows flashes of brilliance in the first quarter, before going into hibernation until halfway through the fourth quarter.

This team reminds me of the kid that is real smart but doesn’t do his homework till right before it needs to be turned in. He scribbles down the answers frantically and gets it in just in the nick of time and he some how receives full credit.

One of the big reasons for such tension was released yesterday in Brad St. Louis. After two bad snaps against Baltimore and six over the first four games, the Bengals released the veteran long snapper/tight end on Tuesday and signed Clark Harris.

Kicker Shayne Graham has looked extremely tentative in his kicking and as a result has had two field goals blocked against the Browns’ Shaun Rodgers. A competent long snapper should solve that problem.

The offensive line looked to be a huge issue going into the season because of the horrid play of last year. But the unit has unexpectedly gelled together nicely. The line has protected Palmer well and has opened holes up the middle for RB Cedric Benson.

Speaking of Benson, he leads the NFL in rushing with 487 yards. He is on pace for a team-record 1,558 rushing yards which would shatter the Bengals team record. The scary thing is that the Bengals have yet to use unknown explosive rookie RB Bernard Scott much.

The rookie from Abilene Christian has only 10 carries on the year for 45 yards but has shown signs of his raw speed. He scored 60 TD’s his last two years in college after letting off the field incidents derail his chances of getting a division one scholarship.
But this guy has talent and considering Benson leads the NFL in carries, Scott will be getting more touches as the grueling 16 game schedule rolls on. He will be a good waiver wire fantasy pick-up in the coming weeks.

Back to the O-line, once LT Andre “the giant” Smith is able to get on the field the depth will only increase. He has been sidelined all year with a broken foot. Reports out of Cincinnati suggest that his foot is almost 100 percent healed and he actually is in decent shape. Considering the Alabama product didn’t even allow a sack in his final year in the SEC, his future is promising.

In the secondary the line-backing core is black hole deep. Dhani Jones provides the veteran leadership, Keith Rivers leads the team in tackles with 29, and rookie Rey Maualuga provides the devastating blows. On top of the stellar starters, back-up Brandon Johnson has provided solid support in the run game and Rashard Jeanty, whom has been battling injuries all season, is a asset in the passing defense.

The secondary features two of the top young corners in the league in former first round picks Jonathan Joseph and Leon Hall. The duo held wide receivers Greg Jennings, Braylon Edwards, and Derrick Mason catch-less and limited Hines Ward and Brandon Marshall under 40 yards. That is some impressive coverage on each teams top target.

Add it all up and at 4-1, the Bengals can still improve in multiple areas. Nobody’s ready to crown them AFC North champs yet, because these are the Bengals, but it seems as if the clouds have cleared up over Paul Brown Stadium. Three home games in a row and a bye means they wont be on the road again till a Nov. 15 tilt at Pittsburgh.

For the first time since 2005, the sky is the limit. It’s no coincidence that Carson Palmer is at his healthiest since ‘05, and the veteran leader seems determined to resurrect this franchise.

All the talking heads on radio, and T.V. forgot about the guy, instead praising the likes of Tony Romo and Joe Flacco over Palmer. Well folks, now is the time to jump back on his bandwagon. Now is the time to watch a 29-year-old pro bowler in his prime.

Sit back and enjoy the show Bengal fans, even if it means you have to keep your heart doctor on speed dial.