One day after losing T.J. Houshmandzadeh to Seattle, the Bengals Wednesday signed free agent receiver Laveranues Coles to a four-year contract, worth a reported $28 million.
Need, filled! With emphasis. Coles, 31, so a year younger than T.J., caught 631 passes during two tours of duty with the Jets, (he spent 2003 and 2004 with Washington) during which he accumulated 8,095 yards and 44 touchdowns.
This on the heels of Cincinnati determining that their running back dilemma could be best resolved by opening up the bank book for Cedric Benson. They signed him to a two-year deal, worth a reported $7 million. Big money, but big needs and big fan disenchantment necessitate such dramatic moves.
Bengals.com meanwhile, reports that Benson's former Bears teammate Rex Grossman will visit to see if there is a fit for him as backup to Carson Palmer.
Benson emerged as the feel good story of 2008, when the Bengals hauled him out of exile, to become their featured running back, starting the last 10 games of the season, rushing for a career best 747 yards.
He entertained other opportunities but told reporters Wednesday that the faith the Bengals put in him, albeit out of desperation, was something he'd found missing during his awkward stint in Chicago. Two alcohol-related arrests soured what remained of his relationship with the team that picked him in the first round of the 2005 draft.
He said the second chance the Bengals provided, is something he'll always cherish and was one of the major factors in his decision to stay in Cincinnati.
Coles situation in New York wasn't nearly as contentious. A team captain in 2007, the Jets accommodated his request to void the final year of his contract, so as to test free agency, rather than engage in a protracted negotiation for a pricey extension.
