Cincinnati Bengals Earning Their Stripes

For Cincinnati Bengals fans, the bottom of the food chain has been all too familiar for too long.

With the drafting of quarterback Carson Palmer and the hiring of new head coach Marvin Lewis in 2003, fortunes seemed to be richer.

Along with wide receivers Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh and running back Rudi Johnson, you had what seemed to be an explosive offense.

In the 2005 NFL season, the Bengals finished 11-5 and claimed the AFC North title with quarterback Carson Palmer throwing a league-high 32 touchdowns and earning a Pro Bowl selection.

Palmer suffered a season-ending leg injury in the AFC Wild Card game that year against the Pittsburgh Steelers on the second offensive play and the team’s fortunes have not been the same since.

Where did it all go wrong?

The Bengals have been tagged with the term "criminal element" a name once reserved for the Oakland Raiders.

Chad Johnson has stated he wants out of Cincinnati and countless Bengals players have been arrested for different violations.

The most recent being wide receiver Chris Henry for an altercation involving an 18-year-old man who claims Henry punched him in the face and broke his back car window with a beer bottle.

Well, the Bengals are starting to do the right thing. They cut Chris Henry from the roster and showed him the door.

Enough is enough after five incidents involving Henry spanning from 2005 to 2008.

Good riddance, now get rid of Terrell Owens No. 2, Chad Johnson. He is not a team player. He is a loud mouth and a showboat.

Granted, there is nothing wrong with being a showboat, but only if your team benefits from it.

It's too bad the Bengals finally got things rolling and then slowed back down again. It's easy to see which players have really shown their true colors.