Rudi will be Bengals' most important Johnson

June 20, 2008

By Clark Judge

CBSSports.com Senior Writer

While most of the media at Cincinnati's mandatory minicamp focused on disgruntled wide receiver Chad Johnson last weekend, another Johnson -- running back Rudi -- was busy making an impression on coaches and teammates.

Not a Chad Johnson impression. A Rudi Johnson one, and, take it from his head coach, that's good.

"I think he's a better player than when he ran for 1,400 yards," said Marvin Lewis.

Rudi Johnson ran for a career-high 1,458 yards in 2005 which, it so happens, is the only year in the past 17 seasons the Bengals have reached the playoffs. Draw your own conclusions.

What I want to know: If Rudi Johnson looks rejuvenated, and the Bengals honest-to-goodness believe he can do for them what he did three years, ago what are they doing tinkering with free agent Shaun Alexander?

They're not.

According to Lewis, the club isn't interested in signing the former league MVP. Yes, they spoke to him last month, and, yes, it seemed like something might happen, but, no, he's not in the picture now. At least according to Lewis he's not.

"Obviously, Shaun is from across the river," Lewis said of the Kentucky native, "and he had an interest. They pursued us a little bit and tried to 'chum' the waters a little bit, but we're satisfied right now with where we are.

"Chris Perry has had a good spring and worked very hard to get back and overcome the injuries he's had. So I think we're going into training camp with the four guys we have; we'll let them compete; and then we'll see what happens."

So we shouldn't expect to see Alexander in Cincinnati?

"No," said Lewis.

Then we will see more of Rudi Johnson, and that's good if it's the Rudi Johnson of 2005 or 2004 and not so good if it's the Rudi Johnson of 2007. In fact, if it's the latter, the Bengals might as well take a flyer on Alexander because, as one person close to the organization put it, "he would be better than what we had last season." What the Bengals had last season was the league's 24th-ranked rushing attack. Worse, they were 28th in yards per carry, with Johnson in the middle of the mess. He had his worst year as a pro, averaging 2.9 yards per try, producing 497 yards and scoring four times.

Cut him some slack. He was hurt, nursing a hamstring injury that sidelined him five games, ended his season early and affected his psyche. In short, he wasn't himself, and the Bengals suffered for it -- finishing with their worst record in the five years of Lewis' coaching tenure.

Now they think they can move forward if they can count on Johnson -- Rudi, not Chad. If they can control the football, they can control the clock. And controlling the clock means fewer plays and fresher legs for their defense.

Trust me, there's nowhere but up for the Bengals and their new defensive coordinator, Mike Zimmer.

But remove the rushing attack -- make Rudi Johnson the ineffective back he was in '07 -- and you're back to a one-dimensional offense prone to taking too many chances. You can look it up: Carson Palmer's 20 interceptions were the most of his career and tied him for most in the league.

"(Rudi) is very critical (to what we're doing)," said Lewis. "We had instances last year where I thought Carson may have had to make throws because he wanted to try to make something happen on every play and every possession.

"We used to be a team that would say, 'Let's change field position, and let's control the tempo of the game that way. And when you get your shots, go and take them.' But we turned the ball over too much in the first five games, and those things put your defense in jeopardy. Sooner or later you're subject to getting plays made against you."

That's where Johnson comes in. When he ran for 1,458 yards in 2005, the Bengals held the ball an average of 1:26 more than last season -- and that can be the difference between 7-9 and 11-5.

Lewis understands, calling earlier this year for a return to an aggressive running game. And that means Rudi, not Chad, Johnson.

"Rudi had an outstanding offseason," said Lewis, "and he's gone back and rededicated himself to make sure his body is in shape. He's coming back from a hamstring injury, and people don't understand how (damaging) that can be. From what I've seen this spring, he's done a good job with that. You see quickness in his cuts and things like that, and he's stronger than he's ever been.

"Rudi's always been a hard worker, but this year I think he really wants to prove that what happened last year was because of his injury. He wants to dispel the rumors and prove that the lack of production was more through injury than it was, say, his ability to make people miss or breaking through tackles."

He'll have his chance. The Bengals better hope he succeeds.