Dan Pompei of The Sporting News sez the Bengals might let Rudi Johnson walk:

Bengals coach Marvin Lewis would be confident going into next season with Chris Perry as his starter. Perry, the Bengals' first-round pick in 2004, didn't make much of an impact as a rookie mostly because of a sports hernia. But Lewis believes Perry will be a special player who could be the team's 2005 equivalent
of QB Carson Palmer this season.

As long as the Bengals are confident that Perry will be healthy, it's not a big gamble. Yes, Rudi is popular. That's not as important as the fact that his durability is a proven commodity.

Perry is probably a better all-around back, and is certainly better-suited to the offense the Bengals are aspiring toward. The days of three yards and a cloud o' dust are clearly over in Cincinnati. What they want is more of a Brian Westbrook type of back, which is what Perry is.

Make no mistake, Perry can carry. He had games at Michigan with 40+ carries. He can pound it. But he can also go catch the screen and make somebody miss in space, which is not Rudi's strong point. How many screens did you see the Bengals throw last year to the tailback? When they did, it was to Kenny Watson, not Rudi.

With the six million it would take to sign Rudi, you can keep Watson, draft a 3rd-stringer in the middle rounds (you know, like Rudi was), and go find some free agent depth for the line on both sides of the ball.