2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Let's talk Cincinnati Bengals football!
User avatar
Joe Bananas
Posts: 1968
Joined: Tue Apr 23, 2019 6:40 pm
Location: Southern Indiana

Re: 2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Post by Joe Bananas » Thu Mar 10, 2022 11:45 am

Mike
@bengals_sans
·
1h
After listening to Hobson on Locked On Bengals here are my predictions for the OL

LT - Jonah Williams
LG - Connor Williams
C - Ryan Jensen
RG - competition between young fellas (maybe Trey Hopkins starts with a restructured deal)
RT - Faalele? Idk I think this one is the hardest
I was crazy back when being crazy really meant something.

User avatar
Joe Bananas
Posts: 1968
Joined: Tue Apr 23, 2019 6:40 pm
Location: Southern Indiana

Re: 2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Post by Joe Bananas » Thu Mar 10, 2022 11:47 am

Joe Bananas wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 11:45 am
Mike
@bengals_sans
·
1h
After listening to Hobson on Locked On Bengals here are my predictions for the OL

LT - Jonah Williams
LG - Connor Williams
C - Ryan Jensen
RG - competition between young fellas (maybe Trey Hopkins starts with a restructured deal)
RT - Faalele? Idk I think this one is the hardest
I love Faalele in the run game but he has some work to do in pass protection, imo. And in my opinion we are trying to protect Burrow, that should be the key to the entire off season. And honestly he's not a bad pass protector, I just worry about how he'll do in the pros vs college with the speed and quickness.

And I love Williams at LG if we can get him, oh, and Jenson at Center.
I was crazy back when being crazy really meant something.

skycruiser
Posts: 1345
Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2019 8:17 am
Location: Parts Unknown

Re: 2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Post by skycruiser » Thu Mar 10, 2022 12:22 pm

Didn’t listen to the Hobson thing, but did he give indication that we’d be active?

My guy said “the next few weeks have the potential to be very special”

LFGGG

MeatHeadbengal
Posts: 2163
Joined: Wed Feb 13, 2019 9:15 pm

Re: 2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Post by MeatHeadbengal » Thu Mar 10, 2022 12:57 pm

skycruiser wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 12:22 pm
Didn’t listen to the Hobson thing, but did he give indication that we’d be active?

My guy said “the next few weeks have the potential to be very special”

LFGGG
I listened to Hobson on locked on Bengals podcast, he made it seem like we're not going to be super active like we have been the past years. He said we were more then likely out of the running for J.C. Jackson because of his price. He was stating that if we went after him we wouldn't have the money to sign him as well as keep B.J. Hill, Uzomah, and others we'd like to keep in house. He literally makes it sound like we barely have any money to spend. He also send we were probably not going to go after a Jensen because of his age. More then likely they want someone that will be younger then Hopkins not older.

skycruiser
Posts: 1345
Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2019 8:17 am
Location: Parts Unknown

Re: 2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Post by skycruiser » Thu Mar 10, 2022 1:35 pm

can anyone post the article from paul dehner about FA he just posted? i canceled the athletic last month

User avatar
Bengals1
Posts: 5045
Joined: Tue Dec 31, 2019 12:54 am
Location: Sedona,AZ

Re: 2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Post by Bengals1 » Thu Mar 10, 2022 1:43 pm

skycruiser wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 1:35 pm
can anyone post the article from paul dehner about FA he just posted? i canceled the athletic last month

Defining Bengals’ free-agency decisions, Part 1: Finding the interior offensive line fit.

Welcome to the cool kids’ table. The Bengals no longer have to sell free agents like a Slap Chop infomercial or offer untouchable salaries the rest of the league won’t match.

Joe Burrow changed that.

In turn, the Bengals are tasked with changing life for Burrow. Over the next 10 days, that will require patience and the ability to pinpoint the primary objective. Free agents want to play for the Bengals, join Burrow and be the missing piece in this franchise capturing a Super Bowl.

It took very few conversations at bars and coffee shops around Indianapolis last week for that to be clear. Cincinnati is, indeed, a coveted destination.

Whom the Bengals covet and eventually end up with, in three specific conversations, will shape whether we look back at this free-agency period as a success on the levels of the past two years or the point when the Super Bowl momentum swung back the other way.

Over the next three days, I’ll take a deep look at those three conversations, how the Bengals are framing them and the most likely outcomes.

• Thursday: Finding interior offensive matches
• Friday: B.J. Hill versus Larry Ogunjobi
• Saturday: The CB2 conundrum

Can there be a Bengals offseason conversation that does not start here? For the infinity year in a row, the Bengals are in search of answers on the offensive line. The good news is their primary outside free-agent focus is locked on the line. The bad news is their history at executing this vision.

Targets such as Joe Thuney, Kevin Zeitler and Matt Feiler all went by the wayside a year ago, as the Bengals felt the value placed on them in the guard market did not match their number. If we know anything about the Cincinnati front office, it’s that in free agency it will rarely go above the value it’s placed on a player, and that value for a guard will be incredibly low. Such was the case with last year’s pivot to defense when the guard market exploded.

Burrow has changed the Bengals’ operation in every conceivable way over the past two years, and he might have one final trick up his sleeve. Can he finally get the Bengals to commit money to the guard position? The largest multiyear contract handed out to a guard went to Clint Boling in 2015 for five years and $26 million, with $5 million guaranteed.

For reference, 22 guards make a higher average per year than $5 million, with half of them making at least $10 million per year.

Yet, the game has changed in Cincinnati. Few magically work the pocket like Burrow. The problem arises when the interior of the line can’t create the pocket for him to work within. Edge rush isn’t ideal, but he can manage it better. When the pressure comes consistently up the middle (see: Titans, Chiefs, Rams), well, that’s how you end with 70 sacks. The Bengals weren’t good enough anywhere on the line, but up-the-middle failures were devastating.

There’s more history of the Bengals investing at the center position, most notably with the man they are potentially looking to upgrade from in Trey Hopkins (in doing so, they’d bank $6 million in cap space). Hopkins received a three-year, $20.4 million extension as the first big move of coach Zac Taylor’s tenure.

If there is a spot at which the Bengals would be most willing to place an expensive chip, it’s this one.

They will only go to the upper reaches of the market for the ideal fit. Who would that be? Offensive line coach Frank Pollack wants leaders and glass-eaters. The Bengals run a wide-zone run scheme that cherishes athleticism and the ability to extend to the second level. They also need enough power to anchor when Burrow works out of the pocket in the shotgun, where he’s most comfortable processing the entire field.

We also know the approach most consistent with their spending in free agency last season was not spending for older players. They want to find value on players in their 20s, if possible. That can be a one-year, prove-it deal like Larry Ogunjobi or the richest free-agent contract in history like Trey Hendrickson. Nearly every time, they preferred the money go to 26-year-olds rather than taking a risk on 30-somethings. The one-year Riley Reiff deal was the only exception, and that came at a point of desperation at the end of the first week of free agency.

Who checks all the boxes? Let’s break it into three categories.

The best fits
Laken Tomlinson, LG, San Francisco (age 30): The age suggests the Bengals might stay away, but the production and lack of injury history counter it. If running the wide-zone scheme, you want Tomlinson mauling out in front. He’s a powerful mover and was a centerpiece of the 49ers’ ground game. He would be a snug fit next to Jonah Williams. He’s logged over 1,000 snaps at left guard five seasons in a row and ranked as a top-10 guard by PFF WAR in each of the previous three. At 6-foot-3, 312 pounds, he has the size to match the athleticism. It will be important to monitor where his market ends up, but he’s an obvious fit.

• Current projections: Over the Cap (OTC), N/A; Spotrac, N/A; Pro Football Focus (PFF), $10.5 million

Ryan Jensen, C, Tampa Bay (30): The big fish. Alpha-male, glass-eater extraordinaire. Jensen has played in this division (Ravens), won a Super Bowl with a legendary quarterback (Tom Brady) and has been viewed as one of the best centers in the league for a while. He’s anticipated to command a large sum, as Corey Linsley did last year for the Chargers, earning $12.5 million to reset the center market. Jensen finished 28th out of 40 qualifying centers in pass-blocking grade on true pass sets last season, via PFF, one spot behind Hopkins. Those are concerning numbers when paired with his age and a price atop the market. Still, he’s a significant upgrade and would bring the fire, skill and leadership the team has desperately been seeking up front.

• Current projections: OTC, $9.1 million; Spotrac, $10 million; PFF, $13 million

Austin Corbett, G, L.A. Rams (26): Corbett has played 2,602 snaps the past two years at right guard, including for a team that won the Super Bowl last season. He comes from a Sean McVay scheme that translates directly to the Bengals and brought the best out of him upon moving from the Browns three years ago. He’s graded slightly above average over the previous two years across most PFF metrics and ranked 22nd overall this past season. Still, he allowed three sacks, six hits and 34 pressures last season. Compare that with Quinton Spain, who allowed 23 pressures. How much of an upgrade would he be if his dollar amount balloons? If his number doesn’t go too high, the scheme fit, reliability and youth could put him in stripes.

• Current projections: OTC, $6.4 million; Spotrac, $8.7 million; PFF, $10 million

Alex Cappa, G, Tampa Bay (27): Cappa spent the past two seasons protecting Brady and improved each year with the Bucs. He didn’t give up a single sack in 2020. Still, his pressure numbers are high, with 32 last season and 27 the year prior. He’s more of a downhill run blocker than a perfect translation to the Bengals’ scheme, but he shouldn’t have a problem doing it. He wouldn’t add as much athleticism as you’d like in run or pass protection, but again, this would be an upgrade in reliability, youth and tenacity on the inside. That’s enough at the right price.

• Current projections: OTC, $8.7 million; Spotrac, $10.7 million; PFF, $9.3 million


Important box unchecked

Brandon Scherff, G, Washington (30): The unchecked box sure isn’t talent. Scherff is probably the best offensive lineman on the market. He would come in and be expected to play a dominant level of guard the likes of which this team hasn’t seen since Max Montoya. But his price tag is going to be a problem. He was franchised twice by Washington, which had his number around $16 million. He’ll probably be looking to keep that rolling and have folks lining up to do so. That would be out of Cincinnati’s range. Plus, Scherff has endured injury issues the past few years, which doesn’t help his case.

• Current projections: OTC, $18 million; Spotrac, $12.9 million; PFF, $16 million

James Daniels, G/C, Chicago (24): Three major factors could match Daniels to the Bengals. One is positional versatility. He came out as a center (the Bengals passed on him for Billy Price) and played all three interior positions in the league. If Iowa’s Tyler Linderbaum falls to No. 31, the Bengals would be in a position to pull the trigger because Daniels could scoot to guard. Or he could take the reins at center if none of the other pieces matched up. Two, he’s only 24 and logged 48 starts, playing nearly every snap when healthy the past three seasons. Three, Daniels brings an athletic profile ideal for the wide-zone scheme and one he will be familiar with coming from zone backgrounds. Yet he found himself in the bottom 20 percent of the league in pass-blocking efficiency last season and allowing 40 pressures. Only six guards allowed more. His cost is expected to be high, judging by conversations around the league. It’s hard to imagine the Bengals extending themselves for a player with those concerns.

• Current projections: OTC, $6.2 million; Spotrac, $7.3 million; PFF $12.5 million

Connor Williams, G, Dallas (24): Williams is an ascending player and was graded by PFF as the 11th-best guard in the league last season. The 2018 second-round pick has improved in each of his four seasons despite the criticism he faced in Dallas. He allowed only one sack, one quarterback hit and 13 pressures in 2021. That ranked third in blocking efficiency for all guards, behind only Thuney and Zeitler. Meanwhile, he’s thrived as a puller and is athletically fit for a wide-zone scheme at 6-5, 300 pounds. However, he committed an eye-popping 15 penalties last season and was even benched at one point. Some around the league don’t see the tape translating to the PFF numbers. You can talk yourself out of the issue with the penalties since they’ve never been a problem before for Williams; his highest total for any season is six. But the benching is a large red flag blowing in the breeze. Hard to get past that.

• Current projections: OTC, $8.9 million; Spotrac, $13.2 million; PFF, $6.7 million

Bradley Bozeman, G/C, Baltimore (27): The Bengals would be stealing a key piece from a division rival. Bozeman has proved he can win in the North, coming off a season in which he finished second in ESPN’s pass-block win rate among centers and fifth in overall pass-block grade by PFF. He’s a locker room home run. Bozeman is extremely active in the community and a Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee by the Ravens. Plus, he’s still young, coming off his rookie contract at age 27. Is he a scheme fit? No. He’s focused mainly in the Ravens’ gap scheme and isn’t the greatest athlete to get out in space with the wide zone. Plus, last season was his first high-end season after two average ones. It was also his first at center after three at left guard, so he might have found his niche. Realistically, he’s in the top half of centers in the league, but he has warts. Some believe his price could approach or surpass $10 million per year. His fit doesn’t hit well enough for the Bengals to go there.

• Current projections: OTC, $6.7 million; Spotrac, $9.9 million; PFF, $9.5 million

Ben Jones, C, Tennessee (32): How much does Jones have left? If you are signing up for three more years like his last three, the Bengals would do it in a heartbeat and likely with a high salary number. He has graded in the top eight of all qualifying centers in each of the previous three seasons. He’s missed one game in the past eight years. He’s been a force at the front of the Titans’ run attack for years but ranked as average in pass protection on true pass sets last season (22-of-40). He would bring veteran presence and leadership and can be obtained below the top of the market because of his age. That might make him a fit, but thinking you see the same between ages 33 and 35 is not the safest bet.

• Current projections: OTC, $6.7 million; Spotrac, N/A; PFF, $6.7 million

Bargain options
Ted Karras G/C, New England (28): You won’t see Karras’ name in the mix with the above players often. This would qualify more on the bargain side of the equation than early-day bidding wars. And that’s why he’s mentioned here. Karras signed for one year and just $3 million in each of the previous two offseasons. But he enjoyed the best performance of his career last season, graded as a top-20 guard and ranked eighth in pass-blocking efficiency. His 11 pressures were the fewest among all qualifying guards. He provides positional versatility with a history of playing center. He won’t win any awards as a run blocker, but if protecting Burrow at a reasonable cost with a younger player is the objective, he checks all the boxes.

• Current projections: OTC, $5.6 million; Spotrac, N/A; PFF, $4.3 million

Brian Allen, C, L.A. Rams (26): Allen is young and was the starting center for the Super Bowl champions. Familiarity with the scheme doesn’t hurt, either, as he thrived in McVay’s wide zone. He was graded as the fourth-best run-blocking center of the year by PFF. The problem is he’s not a great pass protector, with two seasons below the league average. Perhaps the Bengals see a player still on the rise after limited early playing time with the Rams. He’s a potential buy-low candidate on the open market despite the ring on his finger. Again, if the price gets uncomfortable, how do you feel about somebody who doesn’t have a single quality pass-protecting season under his belt?

• Current projections: OTC, $4.3 million; Spotrac, $5.4 million; PFF, N/A
Last edited by Bengals1 on Thu Mar 10, 2022 1:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Image

User avatar
Joe Bananas
Posts: 1968
Joined: Tue Apr 23, 2019 6:40 pm
Location: Southern Indiana

Re: 2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Post by Joe Bananas » Thu Mar 10, 2022 1:47 pm

MeatHeadbengal wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 12:57 pm
skycruiser wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 12:22 pm
Didn’t listen to the Hobson thing, but did he give indication that we’d be active?

My guy said “the next few weeks have the potential to be very special”

LFGGG
I listened to Hobson on locked on Bengals podcast, he made it seem like we're not going to be super active like we have been the past years. He said we were more then likely out of the running for J.C. Jackson because of his price. He was stating that if we went after him we wouldn't have the money to sign him as well as keep B.J. Hill, Uzomah, and others we'd like to keep in house. He literally makes it sound like we barely have any money to spend.
Lmaooooooooooooo!!

What I tell you guys yesterday about hobnob?!?! He's a fawking idiot.

But I guess no one seems to read my posts anymore. Oh well.
I was crazy back when being crazy really meant something.

skycruiser
Posts: 1345
Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2019 8:17 am
Location: Parts Unknown

Re: 2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Post by skycruiser » Thu Mar 10, 2022 2:22 pm

Joe Bananas wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 1:47 pm
MeatHeadbengal wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 12:57 pm
skycruiser wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 12:22 pm
Didn’t listen to the Hobson thing, but did he give indication that we’d be active?

My guy said “the next few weeks have the potential to be very special”

LFGGG
I listened to Hobson on locked on Bengals podcast, he made it seem like we're not going to be super active like we have been the past years. He said we were more then likely out of the running for J.C. Jackson because of his price. He was stating that if we went after him we wouldn't have the money to sign him as well as keep B.J. Hill, Uzomah, and others we'd like to keep in house. He literally makes it sound like we barely have any money to spend.
Lmaooooooooooooo!!

What I tell you guys yesterday about hobnob?!?! He's a fawking idiot.

But I guess no one seems to read my posts anymore. Oh well.
anymore? did we ever? LOL j/k dude musta missed it

User avatar
Joe Bananas
Posts: 1968
Joined: Tue Apr 23, 2019 6:40 pm
Location: Southern Indiana

Re: 2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Post by Joe Bananas » Thu Mar 10, 2022 2:28 pm

skycruiser wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 2:22 pm
Joe Bananas wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 1:47 pm
MeatHeadbengal wrote:
Thu Mar 10, 2022 12:57 pm


I listened to Hobson on locked on Bengals podcast, he made it seem like we're not going to be super active like we have been the past years. He said we were more then likely out of the running for J.C. Jackson because of his price. He was stating that if we went after him we wouldn't have the money to sign him as well as keep B.J. Hill, Uzomah, and others we'd like to keep in house. He literally makes it sound like we barely have any money to spend.
Lmaooooooooooooo!!

What I tell you guys yesterday about hobnob?!?! He's a fawking idiot.

But I guess no one seems to read my posts anymore. Oh well.
anymore? did we ever? LOL j/k dude musta missed it
Right! Just giving you all a hard time.
I was crazy back when being crazy really meant something.

skycruiser
Posts: 1345
Joined: Thu Feb 14, 2019 8:17 am
Location: Parts Unknown

Re: 2022 Free Agency News & Chatter

Post by skycruiser » Thu Mar 10, 2022 3:15 pm

this would be massive

We've seen the #Bengals trade to try and fill an OL need before (Cordy Glenn from Bills in 2018). That took dropping back nine spots in the first round.

Adding a RT would hit them square with talent on need. Don't know if they would here, but it makes sense.
Quote Tweet
Ian Rapoport
@RapSheet
· 30m
The #Cowboys are having active trade conversations centered around starting OT La'el Collins, sources say. A mainstay since 2015, Collins is due $10M this coming year and there is interest from other teams.
Paul Dehner Jr.
@pauldehnerjr
·
20m
Plus, Collins is from LSU, so the quest to employ everyone but Mike the Tiger would be on brand.

Also, as
@KelseyLConway
rightly noted, Frank Pollack coached Collins in Dallas. He would know if the personality fit and bring coaching familiarity.

Post Reply