Friday, February 18, 2000Bengals' Hawkins welcomes competition
Jenkins, Israel, Hitchcock in for visits
BY GEOFF HOBSON
The Cincinnati EnquirerYes, Bengals incumbent right cornerback Artrell Hawkins hears of the parade of free-agent corners looking for his job.
The march through Paul Brown Stadium began Thursday with Baltimore's De Ron Jenkins and continues next week with New England's Steve Isra el and Minnesota's Jimmy Hitchcock.
The Bengals have made no bones about looking for someone to start opposite Tom Carter at left cornerback, but Hawkins is reacting with the same stand-up attitude he displayed after tough Sundays during a struggling second season in the league.
“When they talk about guys like that, I'm not mad,” Hawkins said. “I have to take care of my business. I have to take care of Artrell. If a guy comes in and takes my job, that's something I would probably learn from, use it to learn from that guy. Be cause I'm going to be playing this game a long time.
“We need the depth,” Hawkins said. “No question about that. The guys they're talking about seem to be quality athletes and our secondary would be helped.”
Bengals scout Duke Tobin offered Jenkins' agent a deal while his client and wife visited coaches and toured the new stadium before flying to Dallas for today's visit with the Cowboys.
Indications were Cincinnati pursued Jenkins aggressively with an offer in the $3 million per year range, but that might not be enough to separate themselves from his suitors.
San Diego is making a run at him and his wife reportedly wants to get nearer her parents in the Los Angeles area. The 5-foot-11 Jenkins, 26, a second-round pick in 1996, asserted himself this season in Baltimore ahead of former No. 1 pick Duane Starks.
“He's a guy getting better every year he's in the league and he's young,” said Bengals defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau. “His upside is a long way up. He's got good size, is a good tackler and he can cover.”
But the Bengals aren't giving up on Hawkins, a second-round pick two years younger than Jenkins who has been a starter since he arrived in the NFL. Hawkins has never had the luxury of easing into the lineup behind a veteran or playing next to someone as talented as Chris McAlister in Baltimore or Ty Law in New England. This season, at age 23, he was the club's most seasoned cornerback until Carter arrived with two weeks left in the season.
“If I was playing with a guy like Ty Law or Deion Sanders, there would be a little less pressure getting it down right now,” Hawkins said. “I think we struggled as a unit and I'm part of that unit and I'm working hard to get to where I want to be.”
“I expect competition,” Hawkins said. “I expect challenges. I'll use it to learn. The game was meant to be played with competition.”
Jenkins said no matter what the Bengals offered Thursday, he wasn't going to make up his mind until he made all his visits. He figures he'll make his decision early next week.
The Bengals won't get a backup veteran quarterback that soon. They've dangled some of the candidates a three-year hypothetical contract, such as to former Giant Kent Graham. They contacted Jim Miller, but he re-signed with the Bears Thursday, and have had talks with Eric Zeier and Gus Frerotte.
The Bengals contacted the agent for defensive tackle Tom Barndt Thursday, just in case he can't secure a deal in Arizona today.
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