Friday, May 4, 2007, 06:44 AM EST
[
General]
Ed Hartwell is the newest Bengal linebacker.
And put this on the record - I think it's a great fit.
Hartwell was hurt during his frustrating 2 years in Atlanta. But jog the mental rolodex. He was an up and coming star when he left Baltimore via free agency two offseasons ago.
And Hartwell cannot wait to be playing for Marvin Lewis again, who coached him up in Baltimore.
"Just being reunited with him, I took a visit down there and met all the coaches. The intensity is there. From playing for him you know what he expects. You know he expects the defense to [be] really intense, to go out there, to hit people hard, to come downhill. That's my style of play. Being able to go back and play for a guy like Marvin Lewis and the staff that he has up there is great. The type of player I am, they coach the same way I play so it's going to be a wonderful fit."
And Hartwell had feelers from New England and Denver during this process.
He was attracted to Cincy for two main reasons; primarily Marvin Lewis and the ability to go to the Super Bowl.
Hartwell told us, "I think they have a great chance. They have a wonderful offense. We're going to do some great things on defense and make some plays. Any time you have that going on you have a shot. They have one of the most dynamic offenses on that team and now I'm going to come in and with the help of all the other players we're going to make that defense one of the best defenses in the league. I'm pretty sure everybody on that side of the ball feels the same way. Together we're going to have a shot at that Super Bowl title."
The big question - is he healthy?
"I'm ready, baby. I had two years of downtime. Now I'm here, I'm running around, cutting. Everything is the way it's supposed to be and I'm ready to go out there and go to this first training camp and have some fun."