I must have received 500 messages about the latest Bengals acquisitions. Ok who am I kidding, no one is reading this blog. FWIW the Bengals had a scary start and now they are making it rain to the tune of two solid starters. I have been a big fan of D.J. Reader and see him as a player that continues to grow. His stats are not impressive but remember that was the rub on Domato Peko for years. What Reader is going to do at NT is open things up for the playmakers. He won’t create the pressure but he is going to stuff the hole on the run and force single or doubles up the middle to allow Atkins to wreak his havoc. Not just Atkins but the stockpile of DE talent that the Bengals have.
What about Trae do you say? I like the pickup because it is one step closer to getting rid of Dre. My fear is that with the departure of Dennard that the Bengals might feel a little vulnerable to ride with Jackson III and Trae as their boundary guys and be an injury away from no depth. I think that if the Bengals go early in the draft with a CB that it will be the nail in the coffin for Kirkpatrick finally. Let’s wait, hope and pray that this is the case.
What else can be done…..lots. For one we need a starting LB in FA. On our roster right now we really only have one option with Germaine Pratt. Vigil hasn’t had any sniffs so maybe we retain him but do we care that much? The Bengals are not going to find two starters in round 2-7 that they are comfortable with at the second level. FA has to yield a LB either now or when cuts are made based on the draft. If we wait we are getting a 30+ LB who has had a good career and is going to be an average player with some tread left. The tier one guys are gone so let’s find a solid 27 year old starter that can increase the overall output but also we are not tied to past the first contract.
We cannot stop at defense though which is what the Bengals have invested in thus far. Offensive line is the biggest need. Who is starting at RT? Who is our LG? Sure we can fill one of those needs in the draft and definitely should but we need to find an Eric Winston in FA that is a borderline old guy starter but also is a solid backup so we can take some risks on young talent. Burrow is going to need some help so let’s make sure he gets it. Mixon needs more than four inches to run through so let’s give it to him. Give us some OL and if that is giving up the #3 and #5 for Trent Williams then by all means let’s do it. I hear Washington needs a CB….Dre……