The Bengals have signed WR Matt Jones to a 1-year deal.  Jones did not play in the NFL last season.  He last played with the Jaguars in 2008.  He played in 12 games that season for the Jags and he caught 65 passes for 761 yards (11.7 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Jones has now played in 54 games in his NFL career and he has caught 166 passes for 2,153 yards (13.0 avg) with 15 TD grabs.  The converted QB has also carried the ball 14 times for 36 yards (2.6 ypc) in his NFL career.  Jones will give the Bengals a big target opposite of Chad Ocho Cinco.  Jones should fit right in on the Bengals as he has had serious issues with the law and a serious drug problem.

The Bengals found some keepers in last April’s NFL Draft.  OT Andre Smith (1st round, #6 overall) out of Alabama came into training camp out of shape and he only played in 6 games (1 start) last year.  The Bengals still have high hopes for Smith is he doesn’t put too much weight on.  Inside linebacker Rey Maualuga (2nd round, #38 overall) out of USC got injured before the season was over missing the playoffs and he celebrated his injury by getting arrested for drunk driving which means that he fits right in on the Bengals.  Maualuga played in 15 games for the Bengals last season and he finished up with 63 tackles, 6 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 3 forced fumbles and he defensed 2 passes.  DE Michael Johnson (3rd round, #70 overall) out of Georgia Tech showed a lot of promise as a rookie last season for the Bengals.  He played in all 16 games for the Bengals as a rookie and he finished up with 17 tackles, 3 sacks and 5 passes defensed.  Johnson could develop into a starter down the road for the Bengals.  TE Chase Coffman (3rd round, #98 overall) out of Missouri missed his rookie season as he spent it on the Injured Reserve List.  Center Jonathan Luigs (4th round, #106 overall) out of Arkansas played in 8 games (0 starts) for the Bengals as a rookie last season.  He could also be a starter down the road for the Bengals.  The Bengals didn’t have to look far for punter Kevin Huber (5th round, #142 overall) as he played for the Cincinnati Bearcats in college.  He played in all 16 games for the Bengals last season and he punted the ball 86 times for 3,713 yards (43.2 avg).  He also had 10 touchbacks (11.6%) and he pinned the opposition inside their own 20-yard line 24 times (27.9%).  Huber looks like a keeper for the Bengals.  CB Morgan Trent (6th round, #179 overall) out of Michigan provided the Bengals with nice depth at corner.  He played in all 16 games for the Bengals as a rookie and he made 28 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, had 1 sack and he defensed 4 passes.  RB Bernard Scott was a true find for the Bengals in the 6th round (#209 overall) out of Abilene Christian.  Scott played in 13 games for the Bengals last season and he carried the ball 74 times for 321 yards (4.3 ypc) and he also caught 5 passes for 67 yards (13.4 avg).  Scott helped out on special teams for the Bengals last season as he returned 16 kickoffs for 504 yards (31.5 avg) with 1 TD return.  The Bengals had three picks in the 7th round and none of them played in any games for them last season.  RB Fui Vakapuna (#215 overall, BYU), DE Clinton McDonald (#249 overall, Memphis) and WR Freddie Brown (#252 overall, Utah) were the 7th rounders for the Bengals last April.

GRADE FOR 2009:  C+

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  B+

The Bengals’ season ended with the big thud in the Jungle earlier today.  The Bengals just got too far behind to keep running the ball which they were doing very well which took them out of any kind of rhythm they had on offense.  Carson Palmer couldn’t get anything going throwing the ball as he completed 18 of 36 passes for 146 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT.  Cedric Benson had one of the best games of his career against the Jets’ solid D with 21 carries for 169 yards (8.0 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 3 passes for 12 yards (4.0 avg).  Laveranues Coles led the way in the passing game for the Bengals today with 6 grabs for 48 yards (8.0 avg) with a TD grab but he also lost a fumble early in the game in the red zone which the Jets recovered.  Chad Ocho Cinco was pretty much taken out of the game by Jets’ CB Darrelle Revis as he only caught 2 passes for 28 yards (14.0 avg) today.  The Bengals finished up with 281 total yards on offense (171 rushing, 110 passing) in this game as they had the ball for 26:58.

The Bengals’ D got pushed around by the Jets’ O-Line and shredded by rookie QB Mark Sanchez.  Safety Chinedum Ndukwe led the way for the Bengals on D today with 10 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss.  Linebacker Dhani Jones pitched in with 7 tackles.  The Jets finished up with 353 total yards in this game (171 rushing, 182 passing) in this game.  The Bengals were also really hurt by kicker Shayne Graham who missed field goals from 35 and 28 yards today.  This loss really hurts but the Bengals still had a pretty good season as they did win the AFC North.

The Bengals didn’t show much at all last week as they got pounded 37-0 by the Jets while they were resting some players.  Look for a different team to show up tomorrow in the Jungle.  The Bengals will likely tighten up the chin straps on offense and turn Cedric Benson loose against a Jets’ D that only allowed 98.6 yards rushing and 3.8 yards per carry this season.  Remember though, Benson has had success against run defenses that are better than the Jets this year.  With Chad Ocho Cinco likely being covered all game long by CB Darrelle Revis the Bengals might look to use other receivers more tomorrow.  Watch for TE J.P. Foschi over the middle against the Jets’ safeties as he has earned Carson Palmer’s trust.  Also, look for the Bengals to use a lot of three receiver sets with Andre Caldwell and Laveranues Coles getting a lot of targets.  I expect Carson Palmer to get his fair share of passing yards in the Jungle tomorrow afternoon.

Defensively the Bengals need to go all out to stop the Jets’ running game with led the league averaging 172.3 yards rushing and 4.5 yards per carry.  That will be easier said than done as DTs Tank Johnson and Domata Peko will have to keep the linebackers clean to get to the running backs.  If the Bengals can stop the Jets on first and second down they will be in business because Mark Sanchez will have a hard time beating the corners.  Jonathan Joseph and Leon Hall will likely be all over Braylon Edwards and Jerricho Cotchery as they fell jilted by not making the Pro Bowl. 

PREDICTION:  BENGALS 20, JETS 17

The Bengals turned into a run first offense during the 2009 season meaning that the QB didn’t have to make as many plays as in the past.  30-year old Carson Palmer started all 16 games for the Bengals this season and he completed 282 of 466 passes (60.5%) for 3,094 yards with 21 TD passes and 13 INTs (83.6 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 39 times for 93 yards (2.4 ypc) with 3 TD runs this year.  Palmer has now played in 81 games in his career with the Bengals and he has completed 1,662 of 2,631 passes (63.2%) for 18,724 yards with 128 TD passes and 80 INTs (87.9 QB Rating).  Palmer also has carried the ball 147 times for 266 yards (1.8 ypc) with 5 TD runs in this career.  Palmer is one of the best QBs in team history, period.

30-year old J.T. O’Sullivan wasn’t needed much in 2009 and that was a good thing for the Bengals.  He played in 3 games for the Bengals last season and he completed 4 of 11 passes (36.4%) for 40 yards with 0 TD passes and 0 INTs (47.5 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 4 times for 12 yards (3.0 ypc) this year.  O’Sullivan has now played in 17 games in his NFL career and he has  completed 145 of 257 passes (56.4%) for 1,866 yards with 9 TD passes and 13 INTs (70.0 QB Rating).  O’Sullivan has also carried the ball 39 times for 145 yards (3.7 ypc) in his career to date.  The Bengals’ fortune continues to ride on Carson Palmer’s health because if he does down to injury they are done.