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Paul Daugherty
Enquirer columnist files news and observations

Paul Daugherty
Paul Daugherty has been an Enquirer sports columnist since 1994 and has been chronicling Cincinnati sports since 1988. He has covered almost every major sporting event in America, as well as five Summer Olympics. Along the way, he has been named one of the country's top-5 sports columnists four times, and Ohio columnist of the year on seven different occasions. Last year, he was voted 2nd-best sports columnist in the country, by the Associated Press Sports Editors.

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Monday, November 05, 2007

Groundhog Decade: The Sequel

After I read Mark Curnutte's Q and A w/Mike Brown, I wanted to lie down in a cool place. I thought Clinton was president, gas was $1.25 a gallon and baseball was on strike. While it's worthwhile to get the owner-slash-quasi-GM on the record, I could have predicted the answers. You could have, too.

Unlucky. Disappointed. Want to do better. Great fans. Marvin's doing very well. We'll evaluate everything at the end of the year. 1994, knocking at your door.

In the NFL, it is possible to do better by accident than the Bengals have done by design. They are squandering the talents of Carson, Chad and TJ. Five years to build a defense the offense can be proud of, and nothing but whining about injuries and suspensions. The Bills were missing 3 defensive starters yesterday. They started the year 0-3. They used a QB they'd benched.

Maybe new Bengals fans or the overly naive believe what MB's saying. The rest of us know better. Same stink, different day. The money spends, whether they win or not. The bottom line is the bottom line. Cash flow without end, amen.

When you've had so many examples over the years of how to do it right, and you ignore them all, the only conclusion has to be that winning isn't that important to you. Having witnessed firsthand the charade for almost 20 years, it's hard to argue that.


31 Comments:

at 1:30 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ouch, babe! So, I guess you and MB won't be chugging any eggnog together during the holidays??

 
at 1:45 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

NFL economics allow this to contiue unabated. Revenue sharing and a lucrative national TV contract mean Mike Brown doesn't have to do anything. The team will get around $119 million just from TV dolalrs this year. And that's before revenue sharing from other sources. TV money typically covers player salaries and benefits. But that means tickets sales, concessions, parking and sponsorships are still theirs. The less the Bengals spend on unneccessary things like scouts and a practice bubble means the more profit the Brown family can collect. If Bengal fans stop going to games that won't affect change. The way national revenue is split up the entire country would have to stop liking the NFL before the Bengals would really feel it in the pocketbook. This suggest fans can do little to affect change in the Bengals organization even if they stopped buying tickets or buying merchandise.

 
at 1:55 PM Blogger Allan said...

Amen, Paul.

Any Bengal fan who buys tickets, concessions, parking, merchandise - anything Bengal related at all, is just endorsing Mike Brown's opinion that things are just fine.

2005 was a fluke, due to a soft schedule, few injuries and a fair team that snuck up on people.

Stop being stupid, Cincinnati.

Stop accepting a perennial losing philosophy.

Demand change.

 
at 1:57 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Paul, you are right. However, the other thing that is the same as 1994 is that when the reporter who has the Q and A with Mike asks him the questions, the important ones are not asked ,such as, Why won't you hire a separate G.M., Why is this organization operating with such few scouts and football operations people compared to rest of the league? I could go on and on with the obvious questions, but it just seems so futile when you can't get the beat writer to ask the important basics. Is it just me or do other people see this too.

 
at 3:25 PM Blogger bodacio said...

All in all, I thought Leonard Wheeler and Jeff Query played very well yesterday.

 
at 4:18 PM Blogger Paul Daugherty said...

Hey, Jerry...here's your answer, to a question that has been asked since PB died: "We get the same information as everybody else. Look at (fill in the blank with team having a bad year)... they have more scouts than we do. Is it helping them? I would say no.

"Look, are we where we want to be? No, we aren't. Are we disappointed? Yes, we are. Do we need to do better? Yes, we do. We have to get the oxcart out of the ditch. But we're not going to throw the baby out with the bath water.'' -- what MB would say if that question were posed... BTW, if you have lots of time on your hands, go back to October 2000, when I had a Q and A w/MB... it's frighteningly similar...

 
at 4:27 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Great article, Paul. You summed up my thoughts exactly. Marvin will eventually pull a Bruce Coslet, leave town and become a better head coach elsewhere. At least Mavrin hasn't got the Lebeau stage. "Can we play better? Yes, we can play better."

As for Ben's previous statement about NFL economics, I believe not buying tickets and going to games will affect the Brown family's bottom line. Putting a losing product on the field will affect luxury box revenues, sponsorship dollars and concessions. The less people at the stadium, the less money made.

Fans and local businesses must stop investing into a club that refuses to invest in itself.

 
at 4:44 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

PD
Yesterday was a good day for me as far as football...the Bengals lost, again, to a poor team and the team with the best quarterback and coach in the NFL won...New England.
I sat at Nippert in 1968 and watched the Bengals when Paul Brown coached and ran the team.
PD,we have had this discussion before. Mike Brown and family will continue to line their pockets,and the taxpayers are paying for the new stadium, why should he hire more people. He has his daughter negotiate player contracts. Her husband works there.
We have access to four Bengal tickets for every game every year. We give them away. I have not and will not attend a Bengals game as long as Mike Brown continues the same course of inaction he has since his father passed away.
PD - take care...
p.s. I would go for the $1.25 per gallon gas, but not a Clinton in the White House.

 
at 4:46 PM Blogger stucky said...

(not wishing for an untimely demise for MB at all) The moment the Colts turned around their prospects was when Bob Irsay passed and Jimmy took over. Bob refused to hire a GM and Jim filled in as the GM with horrendous results. At least he recognized his limitations.

So he hired first Bill Tobin as the GM, then when Tobin's teams plateaued he ditched him and hired Polian away from the Panthers...and the rest is history.

Here's hoping that Katie and her hubby might look NW on I-74 for inspiration some day.

 
at 5:06 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

I love the Bengals, I grew up with them, but I will not and can not invest any more time or money into an organization that does not make a good faith effort to win.

Paul: Does Mike Brown really think he's a good football executive? Does he really think that the Bengals have provided a quality product over the past 15 years?

 
at 5:26 PM Blogger doerr906 said...

Any chance we can encourage some other city (Los Angeles, maybe?) to take this nightmare off our hands?
Let's see--every time I buy something in this county I still am reminded that I am paying for this horrible football team's massive profits?!
How lovely.

 
at 5:38 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Paul, I don't blame you or Mark for not asking the hard questions. Actually, I believe you guys already have. Honestly, when you have been given the opportunity to ask questions, you've been outmatched. No offense. Mike Brown is as slick as they come. A true lawyers' lawyer. I laughed myself silly when I read the interview yesterday, if only to keep myself from crying. The guy can look you stratight in the eyes and tell you the sky is green. It doesn't matter how emotional you get, or how offensive you make the question - he's a lawyer, and by definition, will not give you the truth.

I think we all know where this is leading: if you don't like the product, don't buy the product. I disagree with the guy who thinks not going to the stadium won't make a difference. If the team is boycotted hard enough, long enough, something will change.

I suggest making it as ugly for this guy, with all his lies and double-speak, as we can. Don't go to the game, don't buy the merchandise, don't let them know you care. Other than that, what can we do?

 
at 6:48 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

I thought that the NFL wanted parity?? Why not let the Bengals have 14 players on the field on defense?? Why not have a court appointed council overrule on draft day so as to avoid the busts?? This is all the NFL's problem.

 
at 7:13 PM Blogger M&M said...

Then call him out. The headlines should read "Mike Brown doesn't care about Winning", and "Mike Brown must step down".

I have heard on the radio, and read in Curnutte's blog that the fans need to stop attending and supporting the Bengals. A very small minority of fans actually attend the games. I consider myself a fan and have yet to attend a game at PBS because I haven't had the money or time to do so. Besides a growing portion of those attending the games are fans of opposing teams or just fans of the NFL in general.

You, the media, have the power to affect change. Radio and newspaper should be saying that Brown has to change his ways until he does. Print it big and bold; repeat it daily until over the airwaves until Brown changes or leaves. I don't like humiliating another man, but he has been embarrassing this city for 15+ years. It is time he is called out.

 
at 7:21 PM Blogger M&M said...

There is only one multi-part question that needs to be asked if Brown is ever interviewed again.

"Mr. Brown, do you care more about wins or money; if you do care more about wins, when are you going to prove it by modeling this club after the winning clubs in the NFL?"

 
at 7:36 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Long story short, our scouting sucks. Other teams are finding players in the later rounds that we aren't.

The reason why we take the character risks are not because they want to take second chances, but because they simply don't know who else to take. They can't find the diamonds in the rough.

So when he talks about "we already have a three-headed GM" he's sorta right. It just isn't a very good one.

 
at 7:56 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Paul, I appreciate very much that you keep pounding Mike Brown because... as 1:45 Ben pointed out, we can't hurt his pocket book much.

You have a big audience & if Mike's exposed enough, even he might get embarrassed enough to spend some of "our" millions.

Probably not, but it may be our only shot.

 
at 10:40 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

You know,

If Mike Brown can get through the 90's with the stadium he's got, sellouts every game and a waiting list a mile long, clearly, he has the intestinal fortitude to get through this little patch.

This season stinks, but it's nothing compared to what went on back then.

 
at 11:05 PM Blogger JerBear said...

It's kind of crazy, but the Reds situation looks a lot more promising then the Bengals does.

Wayne Krivsky and Bob Castellini haven't gotten off to a great start, but you can tell the passion is there to win.

Bob Castellini is not going to stand for losing like Mike Brown has all these years. Sure, certain Reds fan have written off Castellini and Krivsky, but those are the impatient fans, the ones so upset with how the Reds season went last year the fail to see the commitment and passion that Castellini has.

I love both the Reds and Bengals...it'd be nice if at least one of them was successful...I never thought I'd say this 2 years ago, but I think the Reds are going to be the team that turns Cincinnati into a respectable Pro Sports town again.

 
at 11:40 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

I swear I'm like a dope fiend who keeps coming back to the promise of a high.

I am hanging all of my hopes on Marvin Lewis. I really still believe he will ultimately be an agent for change with the bengals. I still believe he is the right man with enough moxy to overcome the death grip of mediocrity that MB has over the bengals.

God help me.. But Carson Palmer is not Jay Schroeder, David Klingler, Jeff Blake, or Akili Smith. Chad Johnson and TJ are the best receiving core seen in cincinnati in god knows how long. And to be fair, they have suffered a staggering number of injuries and suspensions in the last 12 months.

And I do think Marvin Lewis is the best coach to have landed in cincinnati in a long time.

If this core crew can't get it together, and end up falling apart, then I'd say hope is pretty much lost. I will award MB his victory in destroying what was once a proud franchise while fleecing the city for millions and I will have to move on to greener pastures. Indianapolis is looking pretty good these days. (Sorry, the patriots are just concentrated evil). Tony Dungee is a great guy and they have a hell of an organization up there. I try to attend at least 4 bengals games a year, and Indy isn't that far.

I still believe that Marvin can pull off a miracle in the most undeserving of places.

I hung on for the 13 years of darkness where a 1-15 season was a success. I'll stay on for Marvin Lewis ride. If this ends with the same results, I'll get off this crazy train as its giving me ulcers.

 
at 11:43 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

I swear I'm like a dope fiend who keeps coming back to the promise of a high.

I am hanging all of my hopes on Marvin Lewis. I really still believe he will ultimately be an agent for change with the bengals. I still believe he is the right man with enough moxy to overcome the death grip of mediocrity that MB has over the bengals.

God help me.. But Carson Palmer is not Jay Schroeder, David Klingler, Jeff Blake, or Akili Smith. Chad Johnson and TJ are the best receiving core seen in cincinnati in god knows how long. And to be fair, they have suffered a staggering number of injuries and suspensions in the last 12 months.

And I do think Marvin Lewis is the best coach to have landed in cincinnati in a long time.

If this core crew can't get it together, and end up falling apart, then I'd say hope is pretty much lost. I will award MB his victory in destroying what was once a proud franchise while fleecing the city for millions and I will have to move on to greener pastures. Indianapolis is looking pretty good these days. (Sorry, the patriots are just concentrated evil). Tony Dungee is a great guy and they have a hell of an organization up there. I try to attend at least 4 bengals games a year, and Indy isn't that far.

I still believe that Marvin can pull off a miracle in the most undeserving of places.

I hung on for the 13 years of darkness where a 1-15 season was a success. I'll stay on for Marvin Lewis ride. If this ends with the same results, I'll get off this crazy train as its giving me ulcers.

 
at 6:03 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Reading Mike Brown's comments just make me want to SCREAM!

In the last year, I read Troy Blackburn's comment that, "Marvin turned this thing around." NO HE HAS NOT!!!! ONE WINNING SEASON ISN'T TURNING IT AROUND!

Mike Brown says, "making the playoffs our goal!" How about winning a F------- championship!!!!!!!!!!

I spend over $200 PER GAME for tickets for this miserable organization and, like a drug addict, I just keep doing it! I want them to be good soooooooo bad!

I wish Bengal fans could stage a "walkout" on national TV. Literally, every fan among the over 60,000 just picks up at the 2 minute warning and simply WALKS OUT of the stadium! What a message!

This organization will never win consistently. Period.

 
at 7:19 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Scene cuts to Clarice Carnutte interviewing Hannibal Lector-Brown in his basement glassed in cage under Paul Brown stadium.
Clarice- Did not having scouts hurt your chances with Buffalo Bill Dr Brown?
Hannibal/Brown- I had the only part time scout we had for dinner last night with fava beans and skyline Clarice.
Clarice- what happened to all the crayon doodles of Bungle plays taped to your cell walls?
Hannibal/Brown- Troy and Katie
gave them to Marvin as the game plan for Buffalo Bill.
Clarice- Do you think attendance will be hurt by the continued losing?
Hannibal/BRown- the spring lambs will always return for the slaughter Clarice

 
at 9:03 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

The money the Bengals receive from the NFL covers players salaries and is tied directly to the salary cap. However, it takes millions of additional dollars to cover other miscellaneous expenses. Those costs are covered with ticket sales,advertising rates,concessions and merchandising. So it's wrong to say that if fans stop purchasing those items that it won't affect the Bengals bottom line. It would impact the Bengals very much!

 
at 9:24 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Doc, if you take Carson Palmer off the field and replace him with a mediocre quarterback, this might be the worst Bengals team ever. Not kidding.

 
at 10:54 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Mike Brown obviously does not care about public ridicule. He only cares about making money.

Maybe it's time to start banging on the corporations that sponsor the Bengals. "Hey, National City, Pepsi, Gold Star... Why do you choose to be associated with a loser organization?!"

 
at 3:52 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Here is my question: Do the Bengals make more money winning or losing? Part of me believes Mike Brown may make more money with a lower payroll, a 3-13 record, and a half-empty stadium than with a high payroll, a 10-6 record, and a sold-out season. It may truly pay to lose - but how do we find out? The silver lining is that I may be able to buy a 2-game ticket pack again next year!

 
at 1:23 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Paul,

Kudos for you to call a spade a spade. There are a lot of other writers, both in town and nationally, that could and should keep the pressure on this orgainization. I just can't believe the double standard when Brown claimed the team was not profitable (never showing us the numbers, mind you) and needed additional funds to keep it competitive. Yet on the other hand, he feels no obligation to keep it competitive on the field. Basically, he wanted (and got) something for nothing. Knowing what we know now, how many people would have shown him the door when he threatened to move the team to Baltimore? How many things have we given up as a community to keep this cellar-dweller, bottom-feeding organization in town? Would the Banks have been completed by now? Would the city be in the black instead of the red? This continues to be a lose/lose situation for the city. Fight fire with fire, I say. Keep the pressure on this team and make it uncomfortable for them to operate in the public arena without some accountability. The Bengals have an obligation to be competitive on the field and be accountable for how their public tax money is spent.

 
at 4:02 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

A number of years ago, Mikey stated that he did not like guaranteed contracts.

His rationale..... It created a potential for a less than stellar effort from the player until it was time for a new contract.

Thus, the term "contract year".

With the way the NFL is structured. He is guaranteed a profit unless he pulls a Leonard Tose and gambles it away.

Sounds like a guaranteed contract for Mikey....

I'm just waiting for the "contract year".

 
at 7:45 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Good point 4:02 anon - course we both know he doesn't face a contract year - we're screwed, in perpetuity.

Our kid's kids will be _itching about Katie Blackburn, in 2037.

BTW, recently came to light - Ham Co (tax-payers) pays a "company" to "manage" the stadium for us. Guess who's a Director of the "company" - former Commissioner "Bengal Bob" Bedinghaus. Guess who "owns" the "company" - Mike Brown. Somehow, this must be illegal.

 
at 10:21 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

"We want to put a competitive team on the field"

-Mike Brown

"We want to win championships"
-Jerry Jones, Dan Rooney, etc, etc...

I truly believe in my heart that Mike Brown wants to win. But only as a by-product of his "business plan". His plan is money. He won't deviate from it. He buys into the "parity will enable us to have just enough success to keep the fans happy". What he fails to realize that the "parity rule" without any effort may line his pockets, but won't do much more than that. He looks at the bottom line and sees profits. Obviously (he says to himeslf) the effort is there otherwise we'd not be raking like we are...It's a damned shame because the locals here deserve better. Yet, here we are, a week past Halloween already talking about next year...Oh well...After all, there's golf to be played and tennis to be served up...

yahoo.

-Dave in Omaha

 
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