Artrell Hawkins (Gary Landers photo) | ZOOM |

        GEORGETOWN, Ky. — If you play in the NFL long enough, you develop a reputation. That's especially true if you play cornerback, where every mistake you make is replayed on television and then replayed again from a more incriminating angle.

        After three years in the league, Bengals cornerback Artrell Hawkins knows the routine. He also knows his reputation.

        He's the cornerback with an abundance of speed who somehow fails to make plays. He's the cornerback who had three interceptions as a rookie in 1998 and none in the two years since. He's the cornerback who lost his starting job last year after four games.

        “I've been in a lot of situations where I could have made plays if I turned around quicker or picked the ball up quicker,” Hawkins said Wednesday at the Bengals Georgetown College training camp. “There's always some truth to criticism. I'm not going to say that's not an honest criticism, but I'm trying to get that fixed.”

        Hawkins has made enough strides so far in training camp to regain his status as the starter at right cornerback.

        To many Bengals fans who have seen enough of Hawkins getting beat on a long pass, that's not welcome news. It may be viewed as an indication that the secondary, long a weak spot, has not been signifi cantly upgraded.

        But for Hawkins, it's a sign that all his hard work has paid off. Certainly, he has impressed head coach Dick LeBeau, a former all-pro cornerback who understands the position as well as anyone.

        “Artrell has had a good camp and two pretty good football games,” LeBeau said. “He has always had all the athletic ability, quickness, speed and intelligence necessary to play. He just has to relax, go out and do it in the games.”

        Hawkins was shocked by his demotion last year. He had been a starter for the Bengals for two years and before that for the University of Cincinnati. He always had been able to advance successfully to the next level.

        But once he got over the initial jolt to his pride, he began figuring out how to rectify the problem. One of the few avenues he had available to him was special teams, so he made sure he was the best special teams player he could be, utilizing his speed and aggressiveness on punt coverage.

        “He became one of our best special teams players,” LeBeau said. “That does tell you a lot about a man's character.”

        Hawkins was one of the most intent listeners as former Bengal cornerback Louis Breeden talked to the defensive backs before practice Wednesday afternoon as part of LeBeau's attempt to rekindle pride in the franchise.

        “Artrell has a lot of ability,” Breeden said. “The one thing I talked about is finding the football. It's paramount. ... That has been the death knell of the DB's. They're in position, but they never find the football.”

        Hawkins said he feels as good as he's felt since being drafted by the Bengals in 1998.

        “I'm really at a high point,” he said.

        Hawkins credits his good feelings to a religious reawakening that occurred in the months leading up to training camp. It wasn't a conversion — Hawkins says he has always been a Christian — but a reemphasis on what's important in his life.

        “You have to have peace of mind,” he said. “Right now, I have peace of mind.”

        Now if he can just find the ball.

NFL ends schedule suspense Bengals opponents through 2009 Bengals' Hawkins tries to turn corner Smith optimistic, though agent isn't LeBeau hopes alumni instill pride

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