Odell Thurman's name no longer appears above a locker in Paul Brown Stadium. Its contents have been cleared out and replaced with those of Kyle Takavitz, an offensive lineman on the practice squad. The change was noticeable.

Thurman's arrest early Monday morning for operating a vehicle under the influence led to Wednesday's announcement that the NFL had extended the second-year linebacker's suspension for violating the league's substance abuse policy from four games to an entire year. Thurman was due to come off of suspension after Sunday's game with the New England Patriots at Paul Brown Stadium, but now he will have to wait until next year to apply for reinstatement.

Even if his application is approved and he is allowed to play in 2007, that won't mean Thurman will be playing in Cincinnati.

"We've told him he's not to be around here," head coach Marvin Lewis said. "We cleaned out his locker. Players don't clean out their lockers. It's not their job."

Bengals receiver, faced with heavy coverage, says he enjoyed seeing teammates have big day.

Thursday, September 28, 2006

CINCINNATI — Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson had a blast with the New England Patriots media on Wednesday.

They know he got triple covered by the Pittsburgh Steelers, and that's why he was held to one catch for 11 yards in the Bengals' 28-20 victory. But the Steelers couldn't stop T.J. Houshmandzadeh (9 catches, 94 yards, 2 TDs) and Chris Henry (5 catches, 69 yards, 2 TDs).

"Oh, yeah, they are balling out of control," Johnson said about his teammates in a conference call. "I'm looking at the play getting ready to develop because we have (cornerback) Ike Taylor in my face. We have (linebacker) Joey Porter running to the flat. And (safety) Troy Polamalu all the way over the top trying to cover the deep ball.

Didn’t the Cincinnati Bengals just defeat the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers?  Yes, they did!  And with that early season accomplishment came great local PR for the club, right?  WRONG! 

I am sure Bengals fans couldn’t wait for this week’s media coverage.  They couldn’t wait for the discussion around how this team exorcised last year’s playoff demons.  How they physically traded punches with the Steelers, eventually winning on the Steelers home turf amidst a sea of yellow-towel waving Steelers fanatics.  Even Cincinnati’s favorite go-to-work radio show, The 2 Angry Guys (for those unfamiliar with Cincinnati sports talk radio, the 2 Angry Guys represent the best early morning sports talk radio the city of Cincinnati has to offer) were more focused on the Bengals off the field antics rather than their win over Pittsburgh.   

Where in the world was the Bengal-Steelers discussion this past week in the media?  Where was the discussion on how great the Cincinnati Bengals have started the 2006 season under storybook circumstances?  Yes, that was all briefly mentioned but the main topic this week focused on two (oops, I forgot Reggie McNeil), three Bengals players and their irresponsible decisions to celebrate the Pittsburgh victory by getting embarrassingly intoxicated.  Not to mention one of the player’s (Odell Thurman) decision to get behind the wheel of a vehicle, potentially jeopardizing the lives of others. 

The NFL made middle linebacker Odell Thurman’s one-year suspension official Wednesday, saying he can apply for reinstatement before next season, and Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis offered no clues on his future with the club.

The Bengals have the right to cut Thurman during his suspension if it is based on a football-only decision, but "I can't comment on that. He's been suspended from the league," Lewis said.

The Bengals have once again made it on the cover of Sports Illustrated.  The cover features Pittsburgh Steelers Hines ward getting hammered by Bengals Linebacker Caleb Miller.  The magazine is slated to hit news stands today.  The article hypes the Bengals and Steelers as having the best rivalry in football.  Headlined “The NFL’s Nastiest Rivalry: Bengals crunch Steelers,”  SI staff writer Tim Layden says the Bengals “set themselves up as top cats in the NFL’s toughest division.”

FOXBORO -- These aren’t your father’s Bengals. They’re not even the Bungles anymore.

Arguably the laughingstock of the NFL in the 1990s, Cincinnati has become one of the league’s most explosive teams under fourth-year head coach Marvin Lewis and is a legitimate contender for the AFC championship after ending a 15-year playoff drought in 2005.

Coming off last week’s impressive win at Pittsburgh, the undefeated Bengals will host the New England Patriots on Sunday at 4:15 p.m. at Paul Brown Stadium.

"We have a lot to work on," Patriots cornerback Asante Samuel said after New England’s 17-7 loss to Denver on Sunday. "We have to watch the film and practice hard like we know how to do and go out and play Patriots football in Cincinnati."