NFL
By Jalen Willingham
The Cincinnati Bengals made strides to improve their offensive line in 2022 but still succumbed to the same result that has now ended their season two years in a row. What went wrong and what needs to change going forward?
In the off-season going into the 2022 season, the Bengals made a ton of moves in free agency to bolster their line for Joe Burrow. The entire right side of their line was completely different by bringing in center Ted Karras from the New England Patriots, right guard Alex Cappa from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and right tackle La’el Collins from the Dallas Cowboys. On top of this, the left guard spot would be filled by rookie Cordell Volson which left Jonah Williams as the only returning starter from the 2021 season on the offensive line that gave up 70 sacks total.
This new and revamped offensive line took a while to get going but still gave up 54 sacks total. A large part of how the offense could never play at full potential was due to multiple starters being out due to injury when the playoffs came around. Essentially, Burrow had to go out and play with an offensive line that was almost identical to the one the year before.
The Bengals have to draft better
Although the Bengals went out and bought an almost entirely new offensive line last offseason, they won’t continue to have that luxury going forward due to having to pay Joe Burrow. While the Bengals have drafted very well overall in the last few years, their main achilles heel has no doubt been at the offensive line. Since 2015, no offensive linemen that the Bengals drafted has lasted past their rookie contract. Left tackle Jonah Williams may indeed be the first with his fifth-year option being picked up, but being charged 12 sacks is never a good sight to see.
A big reason why the Bengals haven’t been able to draft better at offensive line is that a lot of the offensive linemen that Cincinnati has drafted over the years that on top of not really having good production and a high ceiling skill-wise, they also aren’t that athletic and either tested poorly at the combine or not at all. An example of this was 2021 second-round draft pick Jackson Carman who didn’t test at all and was also considered a reach being taken as high as he was.
I also do believe that offensive line coach Frank Pollack could get better at developing talent up front although the front office isn’t really giving him much to work with as of late. The simple fact that after the offensive line, that was acquired in free agency, went down and their very own offensive line that was drafted couldn’t come in and successfully protect Joe Burrow is a colossal failure. Not only do the Bengals need more depth up front, but everything revolving around how offensive linemen are evaluated and developed needs to be improved all around. Being able to hit on drafted players up front while also bringing in some quality guys through free agency will make a respectable offensive line.
