Maualuga Earning His Stripes

Just when you thought the rowdy days of the Bengals were behind them, stand-out rookie linebacker Rey Maualuga gets busted for a DUI after crashing a 2003 Pontiac into two parked cars and a meeter in Covington.

The car belonged to an 18-year-old girl and was crashed into the car of a 17-year-old girl.

The 23-year-old Maualuga was held at the Kenton County Jail for seven hours before being released upon agreement to attend a hearing- but that's not all- last week Maualuga checked himself into the Betty Ford alcohaul rehab clinic.

Sadly, this does not come as shocking news to any Cincinnati sports fan. The hard partying followed by mysterious escorts of young girls are all too reminicent of the past. After the hardships of this season, we'd like to think the team was better equipt to make mature decisions. Granted, Maualuga was only one of many men who were drunk in Northern Kentucky that night. The problem is, he's the only one who plays for the Bengals.

Call a cab next time.

With the ghost of Bengal's past coming back to life again, one has to wonder if character is considered at all when this team drafts. Bengal's beat writer Chick Ludwig said via e-mail that team President Mike Brown is always looking to give a guy a second chance. "Mike is developing a reputation for being the redeemer," Ludwig said. "We must remember two things: This is the NFL, the highest loop in the land. And nice guys finish last. If you can block, tackle, cover, throw touchdown passes, catch TD passes and get in the end zone, there’s an opportunity for you to play in the NFL."

So while the drafting habbits of the Bengals are unlikely to change, perhaps we should expect more of this type of behavior. Until the player is willing to learn from his mistakes, the Bengals are willing to give him a second chance...or third...or fourth...


WATCH THE COVINGTON ARREST VIDEO