Bengals Injuries: Freak Accidents Or Conditioning Catastrophe?

The Cincinnati Bengals suffered more injuries than any team in football last year, could it be freak injuries, or is poor strength and conditioning?

The Bengals have lost so many draft picks to season-ending, or even worse, career-ending injuries, the question has to come up at some point.

Is it that the Bengals draft players that are injury prone, or is this a symptom of a much larger problem?

Chip Morton (pictured) is going into his seventh year as strength and conditioning coach for the Bengals, and is in charge of designing and implementing a rigorous year round training program.

Chip Morton and Marvin Lewis worked together from 1999-2001 while in Baltimore, Marvin the defensive coordinator and Morton the assistant strength and conditioning coach.

If there are any questions about the program that Chip Morton runs, it’s is not coming from Marvin Lewis.

Lewis says that, under Morton, the strength and conditioning program remains on the cutting edge of technique and philosophy.

Antwan Odom stands behind Chip Morton and his program, praising the results of his off season conditioning, where he added 30 pounds.

Morton is entering his 17^th season as a S/C coach, and says he adjusts his program every year, fine tuning things that work, and getting rid of things that don’t. Chip says that technology is a big part of his program, implementing new programs to give his team an edge.

Hopefully, for the 2009 Bengals, Morton’s program proves to be enough, and the Bengals have a healthy productive, injury free season.