Sunday, October 17, 1999Bengals risk alienating Dillon
No talks with running back's agent
BY GEOFF HOBSON
The Cincinnati EnquirerThe Bengals rolled “The Dice” play last week and won when Akili Smith hit Carl Pickens on the fade route with five seconds left. Whether they win the roll of the dice with running back Corey Dillon's contract is another matter.
Yes, Dillon, the NFL's rushing leader at an E-Bay bargain of half a million dollars, has a history of not finishing games. Or he'll have a day he has trouble reading the right holes. And there are those with the Bengals who would like to see him make a safety miss once in awhile.
Plus, they watched Super Bowl teams like Denver and Atlanta that gave their running backs the moon now wondering what's left after a major injury.
But how much must the Bengals dole out if Dillon keeps leading the league? Or finishes in the top 5? At last check, Duce Staley has nine less carries and 98 less yards than Dillon.
No doubt they'll give Dillon the money like they gave it to Smith, Pickens, and Darnay Scott. Yes, the Bengals do pay (they're only about $1 million under the salary cap) and never shy away from paying offensive players.
The real gamble is making sure they don't alienate a promising young back by using the system. Remember how Harold Green became embittered and went from Pro Bowler to journeyman?
What they do know about Dillon is he's a solid 4.4-yard per carry man for a team that desparately needs to protect a young quarterback and he's a bit bewildered on becoming a restricted free agent at the end of the season.
Dillon, who turns 24 next week, continues to evolve into a blue chip back and locker room leader. He's serious, passionate, intense. Everything the Bengals have lacked in the 1990s.
But Dillon has minced no words about his indecision when it comes to sticking around the Bengals. His agent, Marvin Demoff, hasn't heard from the Bengals since around the first week of the season when they tried to sign him to a Duce Staley-like extension for 6 years at $18 million.
Demoff admitted, “it would be surprising if Corey were on another team he would be in this situation with the lack of energy on their part. . .by their silence, the Bengals are telling us they don't want to do it until after this season. They have that right and the attempt was made with the understanding Corey wouldn't get upset if it didn't work out. They have options after the season and so does Corey. Corey is going to focus on the season and go from there.”
Demoff, regarded as one of the best, knows Dillon's moods about the future hinge on what the team does that week. But he says Dillon has put the contract aside and won't let it affect him like it angered cornerback Ashley Ambrose last season.
“There are weeks when things are going well and there's a lot of young guys on the team that Corey gets along with and relates well with,” Demoff said. “And there are weeks when it doesn't go well and he wonders what happens next season.”
In the Bengals' defense, they have little more than $1 million under the salary cap and have pledged to make another run at a multi-year deal eit h er late in the season or after the season. And they have constantly said they want Dillon back.
Because Dillon is a restricted free agent at the end of the year, they can keep him next season in a variety of ways. They can tender him one-year offers between about $600,000 and $1.3 million, giving them the right to match. Or lose him to another team in exchange for draft picks.
Dillon has said he doesn't want a one-year deal. But he doesn't want to pull a Jamal Anderson and sit out, either.
RE-ALIGNMENT TALK: Bengals President Mike Brown usually agrees with Steelers owner Dan Rooney, but not on re-alignment. Rooney would like a new four-team AFC Central to include Baltimore. Brown's first choice is Indianapolis to join Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and Cleveland. Cleveland has pitched Detroit, but Brown says the Lions want to stay with Chicago and Green Bay.
“I see Baltimore as a better fit in the East and I don't know if some of the connections (Art Modell) won't erode as time goes on,” Brown said. “Our people can travel to Cleveland and Pittsburgh and that's good. Indianapolis is a beautiful city and a short drive (two hours).”
FINAL WORD: Let Brown have the final say on Smith's celebration in the face of the Cleveland bench. He remembers when a Bengals coach named Paul Brown thrust his fist in the air after a win over Cleveland.
“That's about as much emotion as I ever saw from him on the field,” Mike Brown said. “I'm not concerned about it. It was a natural reaction. I don't think you would have seen it if the score was 28-14. It was tied into the finish. If it was the reverse, I'm sure they would have celebrated. One thing it did do was kick-start the rivalry and that's good.”
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