Football, real life, real heroes, and music

PALM BEACH, Fla. -- It's the hurry-up-and-wait mode here at the NFL annual meetings, standing outside conference rooms and waiting for Bengals' and other team and league executives to come out and talk about what was discussed behind closed doors.

Item 1: Here, from the land of the rich and often self-important, where I am part of the machinery that creates and promotes many false heroes, I want to add my voice to all of those back home in Greater Cincinnati in sending my best wishes to the family of Army Staff Sgt. Matt Maupin, a true hero. Godspeed. The family learned Sunday that his remains had been identified. He was captured in an ambush of his fuel convoy April 9, 2004, and had been listed as missing in action.

I have a close friend with a second son headed this week to Iraq. The stress and worry are constant in military families.

Item 2: Speaking of heroes, rest in peace, G. Edward Wetterer, 83, who served in World War II in the U.S. Army Air Corps in Burma. Mr. Wetterer, most recently of Milford, died Wednesday night. Condolences to his family, especially his widow and three children. I thought many times during the past week of my own father, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran from World War II, who saw combat in the Marshall Islands and died five years ago.

Item 3: It's tough to move on from the first two items, but here goes. I've been asked what I would do if I were picking for the Bengals in the draft.

I'd trade up to get Southern California's Sedrick Ellis, if they think he's not going to be there at No. 9, filling a glaring need at defensive tackle. Ellis would help make the players around him better. The Bengals can't trade any of the compensatory picks they are going to receive (we should learn those today), three or four total, including one as high as the third round, but they showed in willingness to move a couple of their original picks to Detroit and the Jets in attempts to trade for defensive tackles Shaun Rogers and Dewayne Robertson.

In Round 2, I get more defense, or an offensive lineman. Stay away from the sexy, offensive "skilled" positions in the first two rounds. I was critical of using the second-round pick last year on tailback Kenny Irons and would be critical again this year if either of the top two picks go to offense. In Round 3, maybe you look for a wide receiver to develop but that can contribute immediately as a kickoff or punt returner.

The Bengals have their original six picks (they traded one last September to St. Louis for quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick) and could get three or four more from the league to compensate for free agent losses in 2007.

Item 4: I'm coming back, once in a while, to music on this blog (some readers actually asked for it). What I'm listening to now: Gary Louris' "Vagabonds," Wilco's "Sky Blue Sky" and Springsteen's "Magic."

Item 5: Speaking of Springsteen, I've got a lot of faults as a parent, but I had confirmation that I'm doing at least something right. I took a friend and my three children -- sons 18 and 16, and daughter 10 -- to Springsteen's show downtown March 22. It was a Christmas gift. I looked over and saw Emma singing along to "The Promised Land" and "Long Walk Home," two songs she hears a lot with her dad.