THE BROO VIEW with Ken Broo

He's baaack! Late Monday, NFL Commissioner, Roger Goodell, re-instated Bengals linebacker, Odell Thurman. Thurman burst onto the NFL scene as a rookie in 2005. But soon, he fell into the wrong crowd and accumulated a series of arrests. Banned from the league the past two seasons, Thurman is now eligible to practice with and play for the Bengals. Read all about it, right here on espn.com.

No telling what kind of impact Thurman will have. Two years away from the game is along time, by NFL standards. But I think for any player who plays a reactionary position, it's a little easier to return. Now, the big question is, can Thurman stay clean and sober.

Well, at least based on one night, the Reds need to do more than just tweak the roster. Up from the minors came infielder, Jerry Hairston, Jr, and pitcher Matt Belisle. Belisle got the start Monday night against the Dodgers, and again showed just how big the gap is between the Majors and AAA. Belisle had a number of good starts, rehabbing a sore arm. But the Dodgers made Belisle look like he was throwing batting practice. Hal McCoy has the inside scoop in his daily blog "The Real McCoy" on the Dayton Daily News web site.

Belisle's line: 4 ip (he got no one out in the 5th) 12 hits and seven runs, five earned. He'll get at least a couple more starts. But he looked suspiciously like the Belisle we've seen before in Cincinnati.

Marvin Lewis holds his annual pre draft news conference Tuesday. I'm sure he'll be peppered with Chad Johnson questions. Lewis has said on three different occasions the Bengals will 'not' trade Johnson. If he says the same thing Tuesday, I'm convinced the Bengals will force Johnson's hand. If he elects to sit out part or all of the season, he will be heavily fined.

Check back later Tuesday for more. And my latest podcast will be posted over-night on my web site: www.kenbroo.com. The latest episode will be on the front page. In the "Podcasts & More" section, you can download all of the past episodes.