While the New York Jets may be the most boisterous team this off-season and are the subject of HBO’s “Hard Knocks” series this summer, the most fascinating locker room in 2010 may be the Cincinnati Bengals. 

The outspoken roster led by wide receiver/reality TV dancerChad Ochocinco has been augmented this season by controversial defensive back Adam “Pacman” Jones and equally-loquacious wide receiver Terrell Owens.  This motley crew debuted for the first time last night and kicked off the NFL preseason losing 16-7 to T.O.’s former team, the Dallas Cowboys.

The pairing of Ochocinco and Owens might be the most fascinating and unpredictable one this season.  Ochocinco has already come up with a name for the “dynamic duo” announcing on Twitter that T.O. will be Batman, while he will play Robin.  (This photo-shop pic is worth a look.)

What can we expect from these self-titled “superheroes” in 2010? 

For starters there should be plenty of creative end zone acts.  After all, this is the same tandum that has given us some of the league’s most notorious end zone celebrations – from Ochocinco’s “bribing” of a referee and donning a sombrero to Owens’ autographing a football with a Sharpie and stomping on the Cowboy’s logo at midfield during a game. 

Don’t be surprised if the Dynamic Duo pay more in fines to Commissioner Roger Goodell this season than some Wall Street firms paid to the SEC.

This pairing is worth watching but not because of their thespian talents, because they are likely to go up in flames.  Ochocinco has long griped about not getting the ball enough (as he did last year), and that may only get worse with T.O. on the other side of the line of scrimmage. Likewise, Owens has been known to voice similar gripes, as he did with former teammates Jeff Garcia, Donovan McNabb and Tony Romo.  Add to the mix another free agent, former Bucs wideout Antonio Bryant, and you have to expect at least one disgruntled receiver in Cincy.

The real winner in all this could be Bengals QB Carson Palmer.  While he will have an improved crew of wideouts, at the very least he should be entertained all year.  Here’s hoping that T.O. tearfully defends his “teammate/quarterback” – and doesn’t instead question his sexuality.

While last night’s sneak preview of Batman & Robin was tame with Owens snagging two passes for 18 yards and Ocho-5 being held off the stats sheet, it’s still only the trailer for this train wreck.  Will the final NFL adaption of the show be worse than the big-screen version?

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri covers the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. He previously wrote for 1766, the Rutgers Alumni Magazine, and popular blog, ‘The Outer Loop’.  Be sure to follow Chris on Twitter for more MLB and sports observations.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

Appears Terrell Owens won’t make that great of a first impression after all in Cincinnati after the flamboyant wide receiver missed his flight, causing a rescheduling of his welcome news conference.

T.O. will address the media tonight instead and was on Twitter communicating with his followers and fans after the gaffe.

T.O. on Twitter: “Cincinatti Bound!!!”

Trey Wingo on Twitter:  “So…T.O misses flight to camp..and misspells Cincinnati en route. Remember..you only get one chance to make a 1st impression.”

T.O. back to Wingo: “Okayyyyyy I got it now, 2 n’s & 1 t! CINCINNATI!! LOL!”

It’s all in fun but many people were hitting the social sites proclaiming “Here we go!” or “Let the circus begin.”

For starters, T.O. has brought the spotlight with him everywhere he has gone; that’s expected. And it’s not a big deal that a player would miss a flight, unless of course it’s T.O. then it’s going to get the media in a frenzy.

Regardless of how or why he missed the flight, expect T.O. to bring his act to the news conference and if you think that may be a colorful display of character, wait until teammate Ochocinco and T.O.’s first TD celebration in the endzone.

What are the Vegas odds on fines coming from that inaugural celebration?

Used with permission of the author.

Jay Donetelli is a Tampa-based freelance sportswriter and contributor to Sports Climax. With an opinion sharper than an Ovechkin skate blade with the sting of an Ali jab, Donetelli has a loyal cult of readers who have found a way to love him.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

NEW YORK, N.Y. – The 2010 NFL Draft has been full of surprises. After much speculation about teams trading for the St. Louis Rams first pick in the 2nd round to land Notre Dame quarterback, Jimmy Clausen, the Rams kept the pick and Clausen dropped all the way down to 48th overall where he was selected by the Carolina Panthers.

Clausen’s drop in stock was one of the biggest surprises but he wasn’t alone. As Clausen squirmed in his seat, dropping 44 picks lower than the slot ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper, Jr. had him in, Texas Longhorns quarterback Colt McCoy dropped all the way into the 3rd round. McCoy was selected 85th overall by the Cleveland Browns who threw in the towel on the Brady Quinn project, trading Quinn to the Denver Broncos in the off season.

NFL 2010 DRAFT SECOND ROUND RESULTS

33. St. Louis Rams: Rodger Saffold- offensive tackle, Indiana
34. Minnesota Vikings: Chris Cook- cornerback, Virginia
35. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Brian Price- defensive tackle, UCLA
36. Kansas City Chiefs: Dexter McCluster- running back, Mississippi
37. Philadelphia Eagles: Nate Allen- safety, South Florida
38. Cleveland Browns: T.J. Ward- safety, Oregon
39. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Arrelious Benn- wide receiver, Illinois
40. Miami Dolphins: Koa Misi- linebacker, Utah
41. Buffalo Bills: Torell Troup- defensive tackle, Central Florida
42. New England Patriots: Rob Gronkowski- tight end, Arizona
43. Baltimore Ravens: Sergio Kindle- linebacker, Texas
44. Oakland Raiders: Lamarr Houston- defensive tackle, Texas
45. Denver Broncos: Zane Beadles- offensive guard, Utah
46. New York Giants: Linval Joseph- defensive tackle, East Carolina
47. Arizona Cardinals: Daryl Washington- linebacker, TCU
48. Carolina Panthers: Jimmy Clausen- quarterback, Notre Dame
49. San Francisco 49ers: Taylor Mays- safety, USC
50. Kansas City Chiefs: Javier Arenas- cornerback, Alabama
51. Minnesota Vikings: Toby Gerhart- running back, Stanford
52. Pittsburgh Steelers: Jason Worilds- linebacker, Virginia Tech
53. New England Patriots: Jermaine Cunningham- linebacker, Florida
54. Cincinnati Bengals: Carlos Dunlap- defensive end, Florida
55. Dallas Cowboys: Sean Lee- linebacker, Penn State
56. Green Bay Packers: Michael Neal- defensive tackle, Purdue
57. Baltimore Ravens: Terrence Cody- defensive tackle, Alabama
58. Houston Texans: Ben Tate- running back, Auburn
59. Cleveland Browns: Montario Hardesty- running back, Tennessee
60. Seattle Seahawks: Golden Tate- wide receiver, Notre Dame
61. New York Jets: Vladimir Ducasse- offensive guard, UMass
62. New England Patriots: Brandon Spikes- linebacker, Florida
63. Indianapolis Colts: Patrick Angerer- linebacker, Iowa
64. New Orleans Saints: Charles Brown- offensive tackle, USC

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax™

CINCINNATI, OH. – The New York Jets and Mark Sanchez are making believers out of the football world. Their 24-14 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Saturday’s AFC Wild Card game was their first playoff win since 2004 and extended their season at least for one more weekend.

The rookie Sanchez connected on 12-of-15 passes for 182 yards and no interceptions, becoming only the fourth rookie quarterback since 1950 to start and win a playoff game. Others in that group include Ben Roethlisberger who went on to win the Super Bowl, Shaun King and Joe Flacco.

You have to wonder what USC Coach Pete Carroll is thinking after blindsiding Sanchez with negative comments at the press conference when Sanchez decided to enter last year’s NFL Draft. Carroll insisted in front of the media that Sanchez was not ready or prepared to handle the NFL.

After leading the AFC in interceptions with 20, Sanchez knew the importance of not turning the ball over on the road against the Bengals and managed the game well. His passer rating was an astounding 139.4.

“He just kept getting better as the season went along,” Jet coach Rex Ryan said. “I told him this was his second season now. His first season is over. This is the playoffs.” The win was also the first playoff victory for Ryan who is in his first season as an NFL head coach.

The Bengals (10-7) got a team playoff-record 169 rushing yards from running back Cedric Benson but never got a flow going with their offense, being disrupted by constant blitzes and a variety of schemes by Ryan and the Jets defense.

In last week’s game between these same two teams, the Bengals managed a mere 72 total yards on offense. In that game Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer was 1-of-11 for 0 yards and Chad Ochocinco was shut out of the stat sheet literally with zero catches.

Saturday looked better on paper but that tandem was never able to get a flow going for their offense. Ochocinco finished with just two catches for 28 yards and Palmer was 18-of-36 for 146 yards, one touchdown and one INT.

Cincinnati added to their 19 year stretch without a playoff win.

Related Articles:

N.Y. Jets and Cincinnati Bengals Game Center – NFL.com

Cowboys Dominate Eagles for First Playoff Win Since 1996 – Sports Climax

USC Coach Carroll Shows Bitterness at Press Conference Towards Sanchez – Sports Climax

Copyright © 2010 – Sports Climax

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – It is a sad day for the NFL.

Cincinnati Bengals receiver, 26-year-old Chris Henry died at 6:36 a.m. this morning from injuries resulting from falling out of the back of a pickup truck during what police described as a domestic dispute with his fiancé.

Henry had a rough relationship with the league and was suspended five times over his career but Bengals owner Mike Brown wanted people to realize there was another side to the troubled player.

“We knew him in a different way than his public persona,” said Brown. “He had worked through the troubles in his life and had finally seemingly reached the point where everything was going to blossom. And he was going to have the future we all wanted for him. It’s painful to us. We feel it in our hearts, and we will miss him.”

Henry had been hospitalized since the accident occurred on Wednesday when police say the player jumped into the bed of the pickup truck owned by his fiancé Loleini Tonga as she was driving away from a residence. Sometime later, Henry “came out of the back of the vehicle” according to police.

Henry and Tonga have been raising three children.

Related Info – Chris Henry Bio – NFL.com

Copyright © 2009 – Sports Climax

CINCINNATI – ESPN reported that running back Larry Johnson and his excessive baggage landed in Cincinnati after signing a one-year deal.

Bengals’ coach Marvin Lewis told Johnson he will be fourth on the depth chart behind injured Cedric Benson and the remaining running back core.

The 7-2 division-leading Bengals signed Johnson as an
insurance policy and are only responsible for only about 255K of his salary this year.

The Kansas City Chiefs are the financial losers in this scenario as they are obligated to fork over approximately $4 million to a player who hasn’t produced any impressive on-field numbers over the past few years; just a lot of off-field stress and distractions.

The latest news from the Bengals’ camp concerning Benson’s injury is that he is expected to play this weekend.

Copyright © 2009 – Sports Climax