Against the Cowboys Shipley was targeted a couple times but could only grab two of them for 17 yards, but noticing he was kind of nervous I wouldn’t blame the guy.  The best highlight of the night for Shipley that really made him shine was his 64 yard punt return that should have been a touchdown however he was knocked out at the one yard line.

Once Jordan got all the nervousness and jitters out against the Cowboys, it was against the Broncos where he showed his real potential.  When the Carson and company went into a three receiver set Shipley got his chance to play with the first team and he proved he was meant to be there slot receiver.  Being targeted five times by Carson, and some by his back ups,  Jordan was able to catch all five passes for 50 yards.  Being covered the whole time Shipley was still able to get past his defender and getting through the nooks and crannies so that he could make those catches and two of them being on 3rd down situations.

In conclusion Shipley is showing flashes  of why in the coming days and future he will be one of the best slot receivers around the NFL.  Carson will be especailly pleased because he hasn’t had this type of receiver since T.J.  Also the Bengals are indicating that Shipley is the frontrunner for manning the slot postion when they go into three receiver sets.

MB: Hey Carson

CP: What’s up Mr. Brown

MB: Well I just wanted to tell you that we picked up Jermaine Gresham and Jordan Shipley in the draft.

CP: That’s great news! It’s about time you get me my very own Antonio Gates and Wes Welker, I guess now we might be able to win a playoff game and make it to the Super Bowl.

MB: I was thinking the same thing buddy; besides, I had to show the organization and the NFL that I’m learning how to make the right decisions when it comes to my franchise.

CP: I’m glad you’re learning too cheif, keep up the good work.

MB: Oh and Carson, Alan Fanica is not out of the question yet either.

CP: uh.. ok cheif thanks again.  I’ll see you soon, bye

As of lately the Bengals have been moving on forward on all cylinders but so has the Steelers who have won five straight since the loss to Cincinnati.  If the Bengals are going to win this game theirs going to be several keys for them to do that.

1.) Staying with the run.  The Bengals are going to have to keep giving Ced the ball so they can get the play action going and he’s going to need more than 17 carries maybe even more than 30.

2.) Keeping the Steelers Defense guessing so the O-line can make holes for Ced or letting Carson have time to find a target.

3.) Get the ball to Chad and Andre.

4.) The Defense has to step up.  With Keith Rivers out players like Brandon Johnson and Rey Maualuga are going to have to step up and make some plays, and the D-line is going to have to get pressure up front so they can stop Mendenhall from running and Big Ben from throwing accurately.

5.) Last but not least, Leon and JonJoe got to keep the passing yards down.  Hopefully one of the two will pick off Ben like last time and get the momentum going for the Bengals.

This game most likely will be a low scoring game in which i predict the Bengals will win 17-10.  That’s all for now, Who Dey!

Everyone was calling this game the Benson Bowl, knowing how Chicago abandend Ced and this was his first game against the team that had cut him a few years ago,  and sure enough it was the Benson Bowl, Ced ran all over the Bears 39 times and they tried there best to stop him but they couldn’t, giving him 188 yards for and average of 5 yards per carry.  But it wasn’t just Ced who had a good game, but also Chad and Carson.  Carson led the  Bengals lethal airel game just like back in the day before his elbow injury occured.  Carson ended his day 20-24 throwing for 233 yards and a season high 5 TDs.  Chad on the other hand had his second 100 yard receiving game since 2007, going for 118 yards on 10 receptions with 2 TDs.  At the end of the day Cincinnati won 45-10 and Ced once again became the NFL leading rusher.

1.) The new offensive line.  I believe that even without Andre Smith in the line up that the O-line will succeed and protect Carson and open up holes for Ced better than the O-line in 2005.  Also I was very impressed with the new center Kyle Cook, he looked like he had been playing a couple years as a pro center.

2.) A improved Defense.  After watching the defense take care of Drew Brees and Reggie Bush it looked that great defense we saw last season but much better with a few new players that we picked up, so I expect the defense to be at least in the top ten if not top five defenses in the NFL.

3.) The amazing receiving corps.  This receiving corps. is undoubtedly one of the best if not the best in the league.  Chad is in amazingly great shape and is back to his ways of loving the game of football.  Laveranues Coles just looks very impressive so far and in my opinion a much better receiver than T.J. ever was.

4.) Chris “Randy Moss Jr.” Henry.  After having his best offseason ever Chris is the real deal.  Even though a preseason game isn’t a big deal getting 100 yards in receptions and a touchdown is.  And I believe Chris is going to have an outstanding year this season.

5.)Carson is back.  After having two season ending injuries in the past four years I truly believe this will be Carson’s rebounding year showing that he’s still that elite QB he was before his knee injury.  Seeing Carson hook up with two of his favorite targets and new comer Laveranues Coles he looks very impressive and doesn’t seem like the elbow is bothering him which is a very good sign that he fully recovered.

There’s a lot of new faces on this Cincinnati squad whether it be veterans like Laveranues Coles or Roy Williams or rookies like Andre Smith and Rey Maualuga, but the point is, is that this team has been refocused and reenergized towards one thing and one thing only and that is winning.  I keep hearing people saying  without T.J. we can’t win, but I have news for them we still have Chad, in matter of fact a new and improved Chad, we have a new receiver in Coles who is just as good if not better than T.J. and before I forget we have a improved Chris Henry or as Carson likes to call him “Randy Moss Jr.”   Along with a improved and impressive offense we have a tenacious defense.  With key new additions like Roy Wlliams, Tank Johnson, and ReyMaualuga along side our current defense there is no doubt that we will have a top ten if not top five defense.  So the question is now, what does the new season hold for the new Cincinnati team of ‘09?  That’s all I have for now.  Who Dey!

“Carson is feeling fine,” Lewis said in a statement released Sunday by the club. “He suffered a small crack in one of the nose bones. The bone was gently put back into place this morning under local anesthetic.”

Palmer suffered his broken nose against the Saints last Sunday when the offensive line gave up 3 sacks in the first half, blood could be seen pouring down Palmer’s nose as he walked to the locker room. All of us Bengal fans wish a speedy recovery to Carson!