All NFL teams trimmed their rosters down to 53 on Sunday, making the transaction wire hot and heavy. The Bengals not only made some cuts, but pulled of a trade as well. Here are some quick notes.

--Cincinnati is rolling with six receivers as Jerome Simpson and Quan Cosby both survived the cut.  Free agent signee Matt Jones was a casualty. Simpson had a solid preseason, but still has a long way to go to deliver on being drafted in the second round three years ago. Cosby will be a factor in the return game.

--The Bengals traded for Jaguars safety Reggie Nelson in exchange for cornerback David Jones and a conditional draft pick. The move allows the team to have more balance in the secondary and led to the release of Marvin White, who was re-signed after veteran free agent Gibril Wilson was placed on injured reserve.

--Second-year tight end Chase Coffman, who was a 2009 third-round pick, was cut in favor of Ben Coats. Coffman struggled with picking up blocking schemes and health and never played a snap during his short tenure.

--The team opted for kicker Mike Nugent, waiving veteran Dave Raymer. Neither player blew the team away, but Nugent clearly has the stronger leg.

--Former Bengals, wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh and place kicker Shayne Graham, were also part of the casualties from around the league on Saturday.  Seattle parted ways with Houshmandzadeh just one year into his five-year deal and Graham was beat out by Billy Cundiff in Baltimore.

NFL cincinnati bengals, roster cuts, chase coffman, reggie nelson, matt jones, marvin white, mike nugent

The Cincinnati Bengals decided to pass on signing Terrell Owens today, and instead they went in a younger, possibly more risky direction. Antonio Bryant signed a four year, $28 million deal today, with incentives that could make the deal worth up to $29 million. There was a lot of speculation that the Bengals would sign Owens, especially with Chad Ochocinco pushing so hard for the organization to bring him here. The Bengals were also in talks of possibly pursuing Brandon Marshall from the Denver Broncos. Instead Mike Brown and the Bengals decided to go with Bryant, who comes by way of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Last year Bryant suffered a knee injury in training camp that limited him in action during the season. He finished 2009 with 39 catches for 600 yards and four touchdowns. In 2008, however, Bryant set career highs with 83 catches for 1,248 yards and and seven scores. Bryant could be the guy they've been looking for to compliment Ochocinco on the outside. He will replace a disappointing Laveraneus Coles, who the Bengals released a short time ago.

With the signing of Bryant questions now arise as to what the Bengals will do with their first round pick in the draft. They have the 21st overall pick, a pick they would have had to trade away had they decided to pursue and sign Marshall. Its very likely that the team will go with Jermaine Gresham, a tight end out of Oklahoma. Gresham missed all of last season with the Sooners due to a knee injury. If he is fully recovered, there's a good chance he could be just the guy they've been looking for to fill the void at tight end. The Bengals thought they had that last year when they drafted Chase Coffman out of Missouri, but unfortunately he hasn't impressed and never saw the field last season. Gresham would provide the pass catching tight end the team so drastically needs.

There's also been a lot of buzz around Cincinnati saying the Bengals should try to get Cincinnati Bearcats' wideout, Mardy Gilyard if at all possible in the second round. Adding Mardy to the mix would make this offense insane! Gilyard would give Carson Palmer his down the field, breakaway threat. He would also boost the kick return game, something this team desperately needs! Its not likely that Gilyard will fall to the Bengals in the second round, but its not out of the question either. Nobody thought Rey Maualuga would fall as far as he did last year and the Bengals snatched him up in the second round. Its also very possible that the Bengals may take a chance and draft Gilyard in the first round, but that might be stretching it.

Regardless of what the Bengals do in the draft, the additions of Bryant and Matt Jones (picked up last month in free agency) have this offense taking shape as possibly being one of the most lethal in the NFL. Ochocinco, Bryant, Jones and Andre Caldwell should dramatically improve on the numbers put up by the 26th ranked passing attack from last year. And with Palmer at the helm and a solid running attack headed up by Cedric Benson, this Bengals team could be scary. They could be 2005 playoff team scary!

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The off-season is just underway in the NFL and the free agency period won’t officially begin until March 5. Yet the Bengals are already making some noise.

On Friday the team signed free agent wide receiver Matt Jones to a one-year deal worth $700,000. Jones fits team Mike Brown’s profile perfectly – he comes cheap, has talent, and carries serious baggage.

The former first-round pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars entered pro football as a receiver after playing quarterback at Arkansas during his college career. He never really materialized, but did finally show some life in 2008 when he caught 65 passes for 761 yards and a pair of touchdown.

He was out of the game last season though, after getting popped with cocaine leading up to the 2009 campaign. He was suspended for three games by the NFL for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy and released by Jacksonville.

At 6-foot-6 and blazing speed, Jones does give the Bengals some much needed depth at receiver and could help stretch the field thus opening up the offense. After Chris Henry went down mid-season the team struggled to do just that.

While I do like the Jones signing and it appears to be a good fit, I am still not crazy about the idea of going after Terrell Owens (which has been rumored), Donte Stallworth, and I am completely against the idea of signing Adam “Pacman” Jones, who team also brought in for a workout on Thursday. 

The team needs to worry as much about the impact in the locker room as they do about the player’s talent on the field when assessing free agents this offseason. Adding Owens and/or Pacman seems to be too much trouble for what its worth.

NFL cincinnati bengals, matt jones, pacman jones, terrell owens, donte stallworth

Scratch Jacksonville off the list of team's looking to add a veteran presence at wide receiver. The team inked free-agent Torry Holt to a three-year, $13 million deal that could reach $20 million with incentives, according to the Florida Times-Union.

Holt chose the Jaguars over the Titans. The Bears, Eagles, and Giants reportedly never showed interest.

The 33-year old is coming off the worst season of his career. He mustered just 64 receptions for 796 yards and 3 TDs. Holt failed to yield a single 100-yard game and failed to reach the 90-catch plateu for the first time in six years and did not amass at least 1000 yards in receiving for only the second time in his 10-year career.

While Holt is a big upgrade for the Jaguars, who were entering the draft with Mike Walker and Dennis Northcutt atop the depth chart at the position, the run-first system and playing on grass for the first time in his career doesn't bode well for his overall numbers.

Holt's signing appears to be a major acquisition, considering Jacksonville's recent track record with receivers.

The Jaguars released first-round flop Matt Jones last month after he violated a plea agreement from a July 2008 drug charge, and they decided not to re-sign former first-round pick Reggie Williams. The team also whiffed with its signing last offseason of free-agent Jerry Porter, who turned out to be a major contributor to the team's poor chemistry in the locker room. Porter caught 11 passes (earning nearly $1 million per catch) last season.

Fantasy Football, NFL jaguars, torry holt, mike walker, dennis northcutt, matt jones, jerry porter

Let's check out some of the latest news from around the league:

CUTLER ASKS FOR TRADE (Denver Post)
Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler has formally asked to be traded, a request he made Sunday through his agent, Bus Cook. For now, the Broncos are hoping to appease Cutler's concerns and reach an understanding so they do not have to trade him. Cutler and Cook issued the trade request a day after a meeting with head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Brian Xanders did not go the way quarterback had hoped...MORE

PATS, PANTHERS TALKING PEPPERS (NFL.com)
The trade that sent Matt Cassel and Mike Vrabel to the Kansas City Chiefs appears to be only the first phase of some major wheeling and dealing by the New England Patriots this offseason. The second phase, NFL sources say, is likely to involve a trade that would send Carolina Panthers defensive end Julius Peppers to the Patriots in exchange for the second-round pick (34th overall) they received from the Chiefs on Feb. 28...MORE

JAGS CUT TIES WITH JONES (Florida Times Union)
Wide receiver Matt Jones, a first round draft pick in 2005, was waived by the Jaguars on Monday after he served several days in jail last week for violating the terms of his probation on a drug charge. Jones led the team with 65 catches for 761 yards last year in the first 13 games

STALLWORTH INVOLVED IN FATAL ACCIDENT (Yahoo.com)
Browns' wideout Donte' Stallworth is expected to be charged for his involvement in an automobile crash that killed a pedestrian Saturday. The investigation is ongoing but DUI, vehicular manslaugher, and reckless driving are among the possible charges...MORE

LEVI ON THE BLOCK? (Chicago Sun-Times)
Despite already losing starting right tackle Stacey Andrews to Philadelphia in free agency and having limited depth at the position, the Bengals are actively working to trade starting left tackle Levi Jones. If they can't deal him, they'll probably cut him...MORE

RAVENS RELEASE ROLLE (Baltimore Sun)
The Ravens released Samari Rolle on Monday. The veteran cornerback asked to be cut so he could catch on with another team. The Ravens, who will have $6 million in cap space once Rolle's release becomes official, could look to sign wide receiver Torry Holt, who was recently released by the St. Louis Rams...MORE

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Here are some injuries to keep your eyes on from Sunday's action:

QUARTERBACKS
Andrew Walter, Oakland Raiders - ankle
Seneca Wallace, Seattle Seahawks - groin

RUNNING BACKS
Jamaal Charles, Kansas City Chiefs - knee

WIDE RECEIVERS
Marvin Harrison, Indianapolis Colts - neck
Derrick Mason, Baltimore Ravens - shoulder
Matt Jones, Baltimore Ravens - thigh - Could have return to game

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN
John Abraham, Atlanta Falcons - shoulder

LINEBACKERS
Donnie Edwards, Kansas City Chiefs - knee
Nick Barnett, Green Bay Packers - knee
Adalius Thomas, New England Patriots - arm - headed to I.R.

DEFENSIVE BACKS
Corey Webster, New York Giants - groin - Returned to game
Charles Gordon, Minnesota Vikings - ankle - Likely will miss rest of the season
Mike McKenzie, New Orleans Saints - knee - Likely out for the season

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Green Light, Yellow Light, Red Light – STOP!!! There are some appealing names each week on the waiver wire, I supply my weekly take on whether these players should be considered or not.

QUARTERBACKS
Trent Edwards – You could do much worse at quarterback, just ask the owners of Carson Palmer. The Bills’ young signal caller is delivering on his upside and is capable of putting up 20+ PaTD’s this season.

Brian Griese – Jeff Garcia is in Jon Gruden’s doghouse big time right now and that has left Griese with the starting job in his hands to lose. He didn’t overwhelm me against the Falcons though, and better step up soon or the plug may be pulled on him too.



RUNNING BACKS
Ahmad Bradshaw – Regular blog readers are probably sick of hearing me talk about this guy, but the numbers Sunday don’t lie (31-yard RuTD; 19-yard ReTD).  Bradshaw is frustrating from a consistency standpoint as the Giants have a stable of solid runners, but if he’s still out there in your league snatch him now and hope for an injury as his upside is huge.

Michael Bush – With both Justin Fargas and Darren McFadden banged up, Bush could be the starter this week vs. the Bills. He is at 100% following a trip to the I.R. last year and at 245 pounds, he seems to be a natural fit to be the short-yardage guy even when all three backs are healthy.

Darren Sproles – L.T. owners need to be concerned about the lingering toe injury and they better not hesitate to insure themselves with Sproles.  He only has fantasy value if Tomlinson stays dinged up and has a huge boost if Tomlinson were to get sidelined for a lengthy period.  He’s not worth cutting for a RB that has more a defined role though. For example, I am not cutting Edgerrin James (disappointing start) or a Willis McGahee (battling injury) to take a flyer on him.


WIDE RECEIVERS
Bryant Johnson – The 49ers’ passing attack has been surprising and Johnson appears as if he’s going to be a big part of it, particularly in the red zone. He followed up a slow first week of the season by grabbing 6 balls for 78 yards and a TD in Week 2.

Matt Jones – He has led the Jaguars in receptions in two straight weeks, but that is not saying much. Don’t get me, Jones has upside. However, you don’t need to carry away too much. He’s yet to proven he’s consistent, there are the off-the-field concerns to worry about, and I still think Jerry Porter (when healthy) is going to be the team’s top wideout.

TIGHT ENDS
John Carlson – With nearly every receiver on the Seahawks down with an injury, Carlson is the top option for Matt Hasselbeck to throw to. It showed on Sunday when he pulled in 6 catches for 78 yards.

Dustin Keller – He caught his first career catch, a 19-yard grab, in Sunday’s loss to the Patriots. There was plenty of hype leading up to the season and many owners know that Favre loves tight ends. However, with Chris Baker and Bubba Franks still in the mix it is uncertain how quickly the rookie will develop.



DEFENSE
Packers – Through two weeks of fantasy football the Green Bowl Packers are fantasy’s third-ranked defense. That may not stand true for the length of the season, but they have enough young talent and are fortunate to play some weak offenses ahead. That’s enough to make them a respectable starting fantasy option.

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