Nick Lachey: Cincinnati Bengals Are a Joke

Singer and performer Nick Lachey is a hardcore Cincinnati sports fan and actually almost bought the Reds several years ago. I used to call him a man-bander and think he was just a storefront fan posing as a hardcore guy, but I have to admit I was wrong. After reading his interview with SI’s Jimmy Traina earlier in the week, I have to say Lachey comes across as a true Cincinnati sports fan who knows his stuff.

The best part of the interview was when Traina asked what it’s like being a Bengals fan. As someone who has divorced from the team, I can relate and I agree 100% with Lachey’s answer. Here’s what he said:

“At one point, I tried to defend the team. But if you care about your city, your fanbase and ultimately your team, you can’t defend that ownership any longer. It’s a joke. I’ve been pretty vocal about saying there needs to be a change there. Quite frankly, I think Mike Brown would love nothing more than if this labor situation ended the season because then he wouldn’t have to pay any players, he can run scabs out there and make guaranteed money. For him, no season is a best-case scenario.”

It’s so true. You want to defend your team, but their ownership is a joke. They’re too cheap to get a new coach, too cheap to get a proper scouting department, and too cheap to get their first-round picks in camp on time. It is a joke there. I also agreed with Lachey about Ochocinco whose act in Cincinnati is played out. But the area I disagree with him on is Carson Palmer.

Lachey feels Palmer making bold statements about not wanting to play in Cincinnati is out of character. That hardly matters to me. Palmer was a great sport when the team drafted him and he made it his mission to turn them into a playoff team. He did just that when he could easily have gone the Eli Manning rout and demanded to be traded.

I have nothing but respect for the way Palmer handled getting drafted by the Bengals and the service he’s put in with them. If he’s finally had enough of the organization Lachey himself calls a joke, then I have no problem with it. Frankly, I’m surprised it took him this long to finally crack.