Brown and his Bad Boys

The practice of picking up high risk/high talent football players is not uncommon in the NFL.  But nobody seems to love doing it as much as Mike Brown.  In fact he is so into it, I would say he is addicted to it.  His track record is unbelievable, especially in recent years.  The most recent disasters include Odell and Henry, both of whom were regarded as top of their class in 2005.  Off-field troubles have outshined their on-field talent (or just kept them from playing at all), and now after 2 years of bringing shame on the Bengals organization, we have finally cut ties with them.  Oh, and in the process they have created so much collateral damage that it is going to take years, maybe decades before we get a clean slate with the media, not to mention random Steelers fans (I am going to bodyslam the next person who tells a Longest Yard joke.)

Included in the mix for the last couple years are AJ Nicholson, Frostee Rucker, Ahmad Brooks, and now the latest additions Jason Shirley, Maurice Purify, and Kyries Hebert.  These are all guys that either missed playing time because of off-field conduct, or even worse were convicted of serious crimes.  But what do they all have in common??? They are all extremely talented. This is why owners like Mike Brown bother to flirt with disaster and pick these kinds of people up. 

I like to equate it to gambling... Mike Brown is like that sorry old sap you see in the casino, plunking coin after coin into the slot machine.  He knows that every once in a while he will hit the jackpot, making the whole process seemingly worth it.  Much like Brown thinking that one of these "bad boys" will live up to their talent levels.  The message here is that while it may be an exhilarating risk for Brown, it sure does create headaches for you, me, Marvin, and everyone else in Bengaldom.  And it diminishes any chances of the Bengals putting a consistently good football team out there on the field.  So even if Ahmad Brooks turns out to be the next Lawrence Taylor, the damage caused by all of the other terrible pickups has made a far greater (negative) impact on the team.

PS- If you haven't joined the revolution yet, please click here and put your thoughts in writing. 

Comments

[Don]

Maurice Purify, Kyries Hebert