Dancing with the Stars

Thu, 15 Apr 2010 11:10:57 +0100

I don't know about anyone else but I love what OCHO CINCO on DWTS. I think he brings his best to the dance just as he does on the football field. Can't wait to see his next dance!

SHAYNE GRAHAM - TWO SHANKS DEFINE A CAREER?

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 17:56:20 +0100

Un-restricted field goal kicker made his career in a Cincinnati Bengals uniform and kicked his way in to the Top 5 most accurate kickers of all time with a career field goal percentage of 85.2%. Yet, what he is most known for now isn’t his 7 field goals in one game against the Baltimore Ravens in which he set the club record for most field goals in a game, or even his game winning field goal with seconds remaining in overtime against the Cleveland Browns in 2009 to help sweep the AFC North for the first time in club history. What Graham is most known for and will be remembered for is his 2 short misses in the 2009 Wild Card game loss to the New York Jets. Bengals fans are quick to forget 2007 when Graham had a field goal percentage over 91%. The general consensus from Bengals fans is that Graham is terrible in the clutch situations.

Being Bengals fans they need to ask themselves the question: “How many clutch situations has Graham really had?” Since Shayne Graham signed with the Bengals in 2003 the Bengals have had only 2 winning seasons, which were in 2005 and 2009. In 2005 Graham connected on 28 of 32 field goal attempts for an 87.5%, which included making 21 straight field goals. As for 2009 the entire special teams unit was hindered by the atrocious play of long time Cincinnati Bengals long snapper Brad St. Louis. Graham ended the season with a respectable 82.1% and made 16 of 17 attempts after St. Louis was replaced by new long snapper Clark Harris. However, Bengals fans are rather consistent when it comes to pointing the finger at the wrong people.

In regards to the Wild Card loss to the Jets, the Bengals loss 24-14, so had Graham made both a touchdown was still needed. Instead of taking notice of the surprising terrible play of the defense which allowed rookie quarterback mark Sanchez carve up the defense for 182 yards and completing 12 of 15 passes, the finger was easily pointed at quiet Shayne graham. Some blame was also put on the offense for the loss as well. However, the finger was once again placed on the wrong guy. The offensive blame was put squarely on the shoulders of quarterback Carson Palmer. Apparently (with a sarcastic undertone) many Bengals fans feel the Carson Palmer caused Laveranues Coles to fumble on the opening drive in which the offense moved easily down the field on the NFL’s top ranked defense. It is also believed that Carson palmer is the reason that no other receiver was able to get separation all year long and couldn’t draw the double team off of star wide receiver Chad Ochocinco. All of this begs the question: “Is newly signed Dave Rayner the answer to the field goal kicking ‘problems’ that fans believe the Bengals have?”

Ladies and gentlemen, if you haven’t heard of Dave Rayner don’t feel bad. Not many people have. Rayner is a 4 year veteran (going on his 5^th year) who has been on the Indianapolis Colts, Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs, San Diego Chargers and even the Cincinnati Bengals to kick in a game for Graham who had been injured. Though Rayner didn’t attempt any field goals in a 1 game stint with the San Diego Chargers, he has amassed 59 field goal attempts and has made 42 of them. That equals out to a 71.2%. So, how fans see that as being a step forward over Shayne Graham’s career 85.2% is beyond me.

Simply put, it would be nonsensical to base a great career off of 2 field goal attempts. Especially after the Bengals organization waited 5 tumultuous weeks before replacing Brad St. Louis. This season should have shown the organization and the fans how important Special Teams is in the game of football, so to take a giant step back by signing (and possibly sticking with) a field goal kicker who has barely made 70% of his attempts will prove to be disastrous. One can only hope that the front office will see this before Shayne Graham signs elsewhere.

OCHOCINCO - DANCING WITH THE STARS

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 13:57:49 +0100

As a female Cincinnati Bengals fan, I absolutely love OchoCinco on Dancing with the Stars. I know he has gotten alot of criticsm from fans regarding his off-field activities but I think it gives him and our team good publicity. I dont feel that football has to be his whole life or only activity he participates in.

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Dancing with the Stars

SHAYNE GRAHAM - TWO SHANKS DEFINE A CAREER?

OCHOCINCO - DANCING WITH THE STARS