The news that the Bengals would be featured on this year's season of "Hard Knock" spread quickly across the internet, but it still hasn't cleared up one lingering question. Why?

Frankly, the move to allow film crews into training camp by the Bengals is nothing short of confusing. This isn't a tiny-market team looking for some preseason exposure before the long, empty season begins. This is a team that has a good chance to make the playoffs, and a very real chance to win their own division outright.

Perhaps the Bengals really are looking for some publicity, or maybe they'll use the series as a way to motivate themselves to push harder. It's difficult to conclude anything significant on the topic until the official announcement is made.

On the other hand, the news is great for viewers and football fans. Andy Dalton will be trying to push himself to the next level, and the Bengals as a team will give audiences an example of a well-oiled football machine at work. This isn't an up-and-coming team as we've seen in the past, and it's not a team with a loud group of players and coaches. No. This is a team that works hard, puts in their time, and they simply get the job done. It'll be a different feel for the series that doesn't typically feature such teams.

Unlike 2009, the last time the Bengals were featured on the show, Chad Johnson (Ochocinco at the time) won't be a feature story line, and there is no injury story line at the quarterback position. While the Bengals have been feature by the show before, this team is completely different than the Bengals of 2009.

From a competitive standpoint, there's no benefit for the Bengals to subject themselves to such an up-close and possibly intrusive look into their training camp, but as a fan, there are few teams I'd rather see featured this offseason.

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The Jets offense was a sad sight a season ago, and if reports out of OTAs are to be believed, that group may become an even more lethargic unit in 2013. That being said, for a change, help is on the way.

With the addition of tight end Kellen Winslow, as reported by Mike Florio, the Jets addressed a major position of concern and added a target that could make a quick impact on an offense that has trouble moving the ball.

While Winslow isn't a tight end that's going to amass huge amounts of yards, he's proven over the course of his career that he's a solid receiver that can often bail a quarterback out of a tight spot. Still, there are concerns about the eight year veteran.

A concern moving forward, at least for the Jets, is that Winslow played in just one game last season, recording just one reception. With the Jets making the move on Winslow in June, we would think that Winslow has plenty of time to shake off the rust, but don't expect him to be as good as the Kellen Winslow of a couple of seasons ago. He may get there, but that will take time.

Still, the bigger concern for the Jets remains at the quarterback position. Winslow could be the greatest receiving tight end of all time, something he's most definitely not, but it wouldn't matter if the Jets' quarterbacks can't get the ball into open spaces. This is where the Jets will run into big issues this season. Mark Sanchez isn't their man, and Geno Smith isn't ready. Even with more weapons, it's doubtful the Jets will be good enough to be a competitive team week-in and week-out.

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Lem Barney, a Hall of Fame cornerback, is convinced football, especially at the professional level, has become so big, strong, fast and violent that it will fade into oblivion over the next twenty years.

"People often ask me do I miss the game, do I wish I could still play with all the money they’re making today. Even with all of that, I’d say ‘Heck no,'" Barney said at a football camp earlier today, via Mark Snyder of the Detroit Free Press. "The game is becoming more deadly today. It’s a great game, and I think it’s the greatest game if you like gladiators. It’s the greatest game for yesteryear’s gladiators."

"But in the next 10 to 20 years, society will alleviate football altogether because of how strong it’s becoming, how big it’s becoming and the tenacity that it already is. And it’s only going to get worse."

To say the least, football has experienced a great deal of increased injury awareness, especially in the head and neck region, over the past decade. There are a number of ideas to improve the safety of the game while maintaining the spirit of American football, but there's also a consensus opinion that no league, even the NFL, is too big to fall. Still, don't count on the NFL going anywhere soon.

Although it is completely possible the NFL could eventually fail under the weight of safety concerns and lawsuits, it's far more likely that the game will continue to undergo a drastic change. There have, for instance, been ideas floated around that would eliminate the need for a kickoff and replacing the onside kick. While they've been dismissed for now, those ideas may yet surface again.

Some have suggested that defenders be allowed more freedom to get physical with receivers before a pass is actually thrown. The idea there is defenders would be better able to slow receivers down, creating less giant hits at the moment of reception.

Right now, there's no silver bullet for eliminating serious injuries in any sport, especially one as violent as football. Still, Roger Goodell has been very proactive in making changes, as have the owners over the past ten years. We can expect that to continue. The owners won't sit quietly by as lawsuits tear the league apart. They're already working on solutions, and they'll continue to make the game safer, even if that compromises what some think "real" football is today.

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In what is becoming a repeating theme within the NFL, the Pittsburgh Steelers want upgrades to the stadium they call home, and they want someone else to pay the bill, or at least most of it.

Per Deadspin, the Steelers are suing the SEA (Sports and Exhibition Authority) in hopes of forcing the SEA to foot the bill for two-thirds of the expansion that would add 3,000 seats to one of the smallest stadiums in the league. Heinz Field currently runs at a capacity of 65,500 fans.

In this case, the Steelers may have a point. Within the Steelers' lease, there exists a clause that would require the SEA to pay two-thirds of any "designated expansion" of up to 10,000 seats. The SEA, however, argues that the expansion is simply a "modification," not a "capital improvement." The difference to you or I may be a simple label, but in dollars, the distinction is huge.

The legal side of this will play out, and from a layman, it appears the Steelers may have a legitimate case. It's usually at this point that the NFL team in question would threaten to move to Los Angeles, London or some other city that won't be getting an NFL franchise in the next fifty years, but that's not what will happen here. The Steelers could make such a threat, but everyone in their right mind would know that threat would be total BS.

The Steelers are simply anxious to get this case resolved and move forward with the stadium's addition. Pittsburgh has a particularly emphatic fan base, and the waiting list for season tickets is likely longer than Santa's Christmas list. Every year that goes by, the Steelers are missing out on 3,000 seats worth of additional revenue.

It's unclear whether the Steelers would go forward with the expansion of Heinz Field if they're unable to force the SEA to pay for two-thirds of the expansion. TribLive.com reports that the SEA's share would be roughly $20 million, meaning the total cost of the seating expansion would weigh in at around $30 million.

The line between confidence and arrogance is often razor thin. Sometimes, a player or a coach will say something meant to sound confident that falls on the other side of the line for everyone else. For me, that's exactly what happened when Rex Ryan tried to explain that he's not given enough credit for being a great coach.

"I’m a hell of a lot better football coach than I’m given credit for," Ryan told Newsday.

"I don’t care," Ryan continued. "I don’t need the credit. But I can tell you one thing, when it’s said and done, they’ll look back and say, ‘Oh man, this dude can coach his butt off.’ And you know what? It’s true. And I’ll let the people that know best talk on my behalf about the kind of coach I am. I don’t have to brag, even though statistically, I can brag about anything I’ve ever done defensively."

As a defensive coach, there's no doubt Ryan is one of the best. It's his work as a defensive coordinator that convinced owner Woody Johnson to hire Ryan as his head coach, and it's that body of work that convinced Johnson to insist that Ryan deserved another year.

Unfortunately, it seems that's where the greatness stops for Rex Ryan. He's often outcoached within games by the opposition, and he rarely has a good feel for the attitude of his team. In addition, he's ran a near-perfect circus atmosphere with Mark Sanchez and friends, doing and saying little to remedy the situation.

Ultimately, Rex Ryan isn't considered a great head coach because he's not there yet. Bill Belichick has had the Patriots in Super Bowl contention for a decade, year-in and year-out. The Patriots have been a model of stability in that time, something the Jets haven't been able to accomplish. Rex Ryan doesn't have to model his behavior off of the always stoic Bill Belichick, but he has to have complete control of his team, and that's something Ryan has continued to struggle with in New York.

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When 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree tore his Achilles, the 49ers suddenly found themselves without an offensive weapon they would have loved to keep. Now the team may be turning to Austin Collie to help fill out their wide receiving unit.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the 49ers were working out receiver Austin Collie today.

While Collie wouldn't be filling Crabtree's specific role, he adds a weapon that the 49ers need very much. As it stands, Anquan Boldin would be the team's top receiver. Aside from not being with the team a season ago, Boldin also lacks great speed at this point in his career. Collie would add some speed to a unit that needs it to stretch the defense.

The wrinkle is that Austin Collie has had a number of severe concussion injuries since entering the league. The veteran receiver even told the USA TODAY that he'd be willing to sign a waiver to play in the NFL once again. Dedication? No doubt. Good decision? Maybe not.

The 49ers will likely base their decision on a couple of factors. Is Austin Collie athletically ready to contribute to the team? If he is, they'll ask themselves, will he be able to stay on the field?

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It seems the professional football world hates 30-something-year-old running backs more and more every year. Only 18 months removed from a season in which he averaged 4.8 yards per carry and fell just a single yard short of the 1,200-yard mark, Willis McGahee was released by the Denver Broncos today. Now, McGahee joins a list of recently prominent but soon-to-be forgotten running backs wasting away on the open market.

The Discarded Running Backs Club

Willis McGahee, 31(4.4 yards per carry and 731 yards in 10 games in 2012)
Michael Turner, 31 (4.5 yards per carry and 1,340 yards in 2011)
Peyton Hillis, 27 (4.4 yards per carry and 1,177 yards in 2010)
Cedric Benson, 30 (1,027 yards in 2011)
Beanie Wells, 24 (first-round pick in 2009)
Ryan Grant, 30 (4.4 yards per carry and 1,253 yards in 2009)

And Ahmad Bradshaw only freed himself from that list a few days ago when he signed with the Indianapolis Colts. 

What's crazy is that injuries aren't a major factor with most of these guys. Hell, two are well under the age of 30, but they sure feel a lot older. Running backs age terribly and teams no longer care for them in this pass-happy era. 

"I knew it was going to happen. It is what it is," McGahee told ESPN's Josina Anderson. "They are going younger." 

Younger, but not with large investments. Not a single back was taken in the first round this past, and only Trent Richardson and C.J. Spiller have gone in the top 10 the last five years. Expect that trend to continue, because backs have become too replaceable and interchangeable nowadays.

Although it's admittedly beginning to feel like we're beating a dead horse, the Redskins' name issue is evolving, albeit slowly, and there's now a new wrinkle to the debate.

Daniel Snyder has hired Frank Luntz, a conservative political consultant, to conduct a focus group assessing the general public's opinion of the NFL and the Washington Redskins, according to Think Progress. Snyder is presumably attempting to assess just where he stands from a PR perspective as he continues to hold that the Redskins will never be renamed.

The most important question on the survey is likely, "Which of the following best reflects your opinion of the NFL team name ‘Washington Redskins’?" Options include, "I find the name offensive and they should change it," "I don’t find the name offensive and they should keep it as is."

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell recently addressed the issue, saying the name is, "a unifying force that stands for strength, courage, pride and respect." While calling a racial slur a force standing for "strength courage, pride and respect" may be a bit of a stretch, it'll be interesting to see if the statistics collected by the survey are released. If they're not released, it's possible the numbers didn't come out in Snyder's favor.

Stay tuned. Something tells me this story is far from finished.

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Last year, the Jacksonville Jaguars were a bad football team. There's no nice way of putting it. Their defense was poor, their offense was atrocious, and their biggest problem went largely un-addressed in the offseason.

Blaine Gabbert and Chad Henne are returning for at least another season with the Jaguars. Neither quarterback could provide the Jaguars with enough production to win football games last season, and there's little reason to believe they can accomplish that feat this season.

In addition to Gabbert and Henne, the Jaguars have added undrafted rookie Matt Scott, and more recently, former Patriots quarterback Mike Kafka off of waivers. When asked to assess Kafka's chances of winning the team's starting quarterback job, general manager David Caldwell gave a stock, but likely truthful, reply, saying Kafka's chances were "just as good an opportunity" as Gabbert, Henne or Scott's chances, according to Paul Kuharsky.

Usually "wide open" quarterback competitions are weighted in some way, whether by design, bias or accident, but this is a case where the situation seems truly open. The Jaguars will be hoping that Gabbert can separate himself from the rest of the field, but considering his first two seasons in the league, the Jaguars won't be giving him the benefit of the doubt he's had since entering the league.

The Jaguars won't likely find their franchise quarterback in their current stock, but they're moving forward by ensuring they'll be playing the best of the bunch on Sundays, regardless of who that turns out to be.

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At the forefront of modern social issues today is gay rights, and that focus has spread to sports as well. It's a given, statistically speaking, that there are gay athletes playing in high exposure professional sports, but to date, only one athlete from a major American sports league has come out as being openly gay. That will be changing in the future.

Fortunately, the NFLPA is making that eventual transition just a little easier by selling LGBT pride shirts at their official online shop. The shirts sport the names and numbers of players that have been supportive of the gay community. Shirts are available featuring Brendon Ayanbadejo, Scott Fujita, Steve Gleason, Chris Gocong, Chris Kluwe, Terrell Suggs, and Donte Stallworth.

It's important to make the distinction that this is the players' union's official shop, not the NFL's official shop. At some point, the NFL may follow suit, but it's much less surprising seeing the players' union taking such a stand, and the move is one step closer to full acceptance of the gay community in professional sports.

[H/T Deadspin]

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