The Bengals signed Benson to a two year, $7 million contract last offseason, but Benson feels like he could be getting more out of the team. It’s hard to argue that Benson may have been underpaid last season, considering he put up over 1200 yards and averaged 4.2 yards per carry in 13 games. And since it seems like every player who feels they’re getting the short end of the stick money wise wants to try and re-do their deal with the uncertainty of everything between the league and the players, it’s hard to blame him.

But the Bengals may want to hold back on their willingness to award Benson. The Bengals haven’t been immune to doing stupid things, and rewarding a guy for one good season may not be in the teams best interest. I’d be shocked if Benson held out because he’s unhappy with his contract. So maybe the Bengals should let him ride out his current deal and see what he does this year, now that everyone is aware of what kind of threat he is.

It could be a pricy risk for the Bengals, especially if he has another good season. If he plays like he did last year, he’ll have way more leverage when it comes to contract talks. But that’s a risk the Bengals should be willing to take. Productive running backs are becoming less of a rarity in the NFL, and while Benson had a good year last year he didn’t have a great one.

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When one of the reporters mentioned to Benson that he looked like he dropped his sucker in the mud, his response was interesting, “Oh, I didn’t know I was supposed to be jumping out of my seat or anything,”, “I really have no feelings about it.”.

Huh. No feelings on your team making a move to stay competitive and keep winning? Well that’s a great attitude.

This may seem like nothing but things can change fast. It’s one thing to have two running backs on the team that both could potentially be starters when given the chance. It’s another to have two running backs that have proven they can be starters and both know they can carry the load.

Both of these guys have had or do have attitude problems, and shitty dispositions just don’t disappear. The Bengals have proven they can be a good team when everything is sunny in Cincinnati. But if things get cloudy look out! Near the end of every year a few teams start having a fall from grace. Don’t be surprised if the Bungles Bengals are one of them.

Technorati Tags: Cedric Benson, Cincinnati Bengals, Larry Johnson, NFL