ESPN NFL

Team officials will never admit it, but when the league extended the four-game substance abuse suspension of Cincinnati second-year middle linebacker Odell Thurman to a full season this week, after his Monday morning arrest for drunken driving, there were definitely more quiet cheers than tears among top Bengals executives and coaches.

In fact, league sources strongly suggested to ESPN.com that Bengals officials appealed to the league, and hard, for an expeditious resolution of Thurman's case.

How come? Well, frankly, the Bengals had written off Thurman for the 2006 season anyway. And quite possibly, for good, although that remains to be seen. They didn't want him around anymore. At least not anymore this year. And since his four-game suspension was scheduled to expire this Sunday night, after the Bengals played host to the New England Patriots, Thurman would have been eligible to return to the Bengals and to the practice field the first thing Monday morning.

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