Lockout Over? Nope. But the Bengals thought it was...

Bengals get more embarrassing news: The franchise jumped the gun and thought that the new CBA bill would be passed by now so they sent out an email last night alerting fans that the lockout had been lifted and that they could now purchase single game tickets. Take a look at the email:

You Ready for Some Football?

Dear XXXXX,

We are excited to let you know that the NFL has reached a new Collective Bargaining Agreement that allows the entire NFL season to be played this year.

The NFL is the most popular sport in America. Our games are intense, unifying and meaningful to fans in the stadium and to those watching at home. We are thrilled to have a labor deal in place that will provide fans with a decade of certainty and that will allow us to focus all our energies where they ought to be — on the playing field. The upcoming 2011 season will surely be exciting, and football work will begin shortly. Our coaches will begin meeting with players, and the Club will welcome back talented veterans along with exciting rookies from the April NFL Draft, like top picks A.J. Green(notes)and Andy Dalton(notes). Whether all of that will take place in Cincinnati or Georgetown, Kentucky, will be decided shortly once we receive the NFL's operating schedule.

Bengals Linebacker Rey Maualuga 

Two years ago, our football team swept the AFC North—one of the toughest divisions in football—and many key components of that team remain, including defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer and a defense that ranked in the top half of the NFL for three straight seasons. The area of the team that will change the most will be the offense with a new direction under offensive coordinator Jay Gruden and new faces at quarterback and wide receiver. The mix of veterans and rookies should return our offense to the top level we need, and we are excited by the challenge.

This year—like others before it—we will focus our energies on returning to the Super Bowl again. That's what we want and that's what our fans want, and our franchise has been blessed with great support from fans for decades. Last season we reached a record-setting 57th straight sellout—a string we hope to restart soon—and our games have been the most-watched television program in the local market for the last applicable 96 ratings weeks. This is great football country, and incredibly: 95% of the Cincinnati population watched an NFL game during the 2009 season (third highest ranking among NFL markets).

We are very grateful to our fans, we thank you for your patience during the labor stoppage, and now we look forward to a great season together. Who Dey!

Sincerely,

Katie Blackburn

Marvin Lewis

Looks like the NFL's worst franchise has something else to add to their loss column. 

Is A Deal Close?

Reports stated that on Thursday the NFL and the NFLPA came to an agreement on rookie salaries, which was said to be the hardest part of the negotiations. Does the settling of this huge obstacle give us hope that the lockout will be lifted soon?

The NFL and the players have been struggling since the beginning of this lockout. Peyton Manning needs medical attention that the Colts wont pay for, many players have been getting in trouble (Kenny Britt, Pacman Jones, Hines Ward) and some have been blatantly calling out the commissioner and teammates (James Harrison.) These players need football, and our country needs their to be NFL Football come August. Business wise: this is a multi-billion dollar business and in a struggling economy the players and the country need this economic boost from the NFL. Social wise: people meet in bars, family gatherings, at the stadium, and in garages listening or watching the game every week and it helps us grow together. Some of our best friends are our "football buds."

Several owners, even Jerry Jones, have been spending late nights up trying to resolve this embarrassing situation. Roger Goodell has been working non stop on is $1 salary to reach an agreement, I mean if I was on a $1 dollar salary I probably wouldn't be working every day.

We as fans need to stop hearing "close" "soon" "almost" and hear "done" and "finished" so we can start up the 2011-2012 NFL season.

Can the Packers Repeat?

The Packers won their 14th NFL Title and their 4th Super Bowl with a 31-26 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Dallas on Sunday. After the celebration was over people, including me, started to look towards next season. My question for the next seven months is whether or not the Packers can repeat as NFL Champs, even with that target on their back.
No team has done it since the Patriots nine years back and the Packers may need till 2013 to wait for their 5th Super Bowl title with a possible lockout for next season.
Aaron Rodgers will be the key for this team and they should have more talent on the field than they did in their Super Bowl run. They will return All star Greg Jennings at WR and they will try and keep their entire O-line. Athletic Tight End JerMichael Finley will return from injury to add another receiving weapon for Super Bowl MVP Aaron Rodgers.  Running Back Ryan Grant will return to the backfield along with John Starks, who came alive in the playoffs, to try and add another dimension to their offense. Their offense was a Top 10 offense last season and look to be poised for a one than better last season.
On the defensive side the Packers will return All-star's CB Charles Woodson and OLB Clay Matthews along with DT B.J. Raji, CB Tremon Williams, S Nick Collins, and LB A.J. Hawk. S Atari Bigby and LB Nick Barnett will return from injuries. The Packers are also negotiating to get Johnny Jolly back to the line-up after a suspension last season. If this defense stays healthy then they can be one of the best in the league.
It will be hard for the Packers to get back to the pinnacle of the sports world but it can be done with this young team. If they stay relatively healthy for the season you could very possibly see them collecting their 5th Lombardi Trophy in Indianapolis.

5 Teams looking to knock off the Packers...

Jets- They could head into the season as favorites in the AFC after two straight AFC Championship appearances and returning a strong young team.
Colts- As long as Peyton Manning is on the roster the Colts are in the Super Bowl race. Hopefully they will have a healthy receiving core this season and Bob Sanders can be healthy for once.
Falcons- The Falcons surprised everyone with a stellar season but it was cut short by the Packers. Matt Ryan, Roddy White and Michael Turner will be the stars but the defense needs to get better.
Ravens- This team is aging on defense but their offense in getting better every season. We'll see if Joe Flacco and Ray Rice can counter the strong defense.
Patriots- NFL MVP Tom Brady will look to take the Lombardi Trophy back to Foxboro after a disappointing end to their 2010-2011 campaign.

Others that could surprise...


Texans- Everyone thought they would have a breakout season last year but it didn't work out. With all the hype died down look for them to make their first playoff appearance in the franchise history.
Lions- The Lions won four straight heading into the end of the 2010-2011 season, including one over the Packers and can't wait to get Matt Stafford back under center. This young team could be successful for a losing franchise.
49ers- High expectations in the pre-season last year didn't work out but with Jim Harbaugh taking over command they could take over in the weak NFC West.