Cincinnati Bengals 2016 Season Recap + 2017 Draft/Free Agency Guide
- Tyler Webb
- Jan 26, 2017
- 5 min read
Though I consider myself a fan of the NFL, I do say my favorite team is the Cincinnati Bengals so I thought why not start my season recaps with them. As a fan, the season was overall tough to watch. Our run game was terrible from the start, then Giovani Bernard torn his ACL and we found a way to make it worse. The departure of Marvin Jones and Mohamed Sanu weren’t as bad as I first thought they would be, as Brandon LaFell was a consistent target for Andy Dalton this year. We sure did seem to miss Andre Smith this season, as our offensive line seem out of whack from the get go too. We have a lot of young pieces within our line, including free agent to be Kevin Zeitler who will be a major plan in this years free agency. All this could be a part of the departure of Hue Jackson as our offensive coordinator, making the offense have to re-learn yet another system. All year we shot ourselves in the foot, and our record showed it. 6-9-1 and finishing 3rd in a division with a 1-15 team being the 4th is an embarrassing season to say the least. Sitting at 6-9-1 seems to be worst case scenario for this Bengals team that made the playoffs four years in a row. With a 2 point loss to the Texans, a 1 point loss to the Giants, and that disgusting tie of a game with the Redskins, we are left with a lot of “what ifs” on the season. Luckily this draft and free agency are both very deep, and could provide the Bengals with a quick turnaround for the 2018 season.
In a down season, we still had a lot of great performances throughout the season. A.J. Green looked to burst himself into the “Top Wide Receiver” talk with how he played in the season opener against the Jets. Green had 12 catches on 13 targets and 180 yards, which brought the downfall of Revis Island upon the NFL. He had 4 100-yard games in the 9 games he played, breaking 150 yards 3 times this season. This might break a lot of my fellow Bengals fans hearts, but A.J Green was on pace for 1,713 yards on 117 catches and 9 touchdowns , which would have lead the league (Catches and Yards). Rookie Tyler Boyd had a good first season as the Bengals 2nd/3rd receiver finishing with 54 catches and 604 yards, proving he could see more use in the future. Geno Atkins has been showing no signs of his ACL surgery limiting him in anyway. Atkins had 9 sacks and 32 tackles on the season, earning him AFC North Defensive MVP honors and a Pro Bowl nod. Andy Dalton didn’t have a pretty year, but if you take a closer look at his stats, they aren’t as bad as they seem. 4,206 yards (11th), 18 (22nd) touchdowns with 8 INT isn’t a terrible year considering he was also sacked 41 times. Andy was selected to the Pro Bowl (3rd) this season as Tyrod Taylor’s injury replacement. Jeremy Hill had an up/down season with 839 yards but only 3.8 yards a carry, but of course at 235 lbs he got his red-zone looks finishing with 9 touchdowns. Giovani Bernard wasn’t doing much different at 3.7 yards a carry before tearing his ACL in week 11.
On the bright side of things, we got a top 10 draft pick (9th) in an extremely deep and talented draft class. With this pick I have been eyeing Reuben Foster since the beginning and it looks like he might fall perfectly into our laps. I watched Foster all year fly around that Alabama defense making play after play, and the next day I would watch the Bengals defense get shred in the run game. Vontaze Burfict needs to be replaced soon, I will agree, but right now he is a top 3 defensive guy on our team so Foster gives us the flexibility we need.
Sticking in Alabama, Cam Robinson would also making sense in drafting due to our tackle issue. With Whitworth might not be coming back, and with Cedric Ogbuehi still needing work, our tackle spot is looking very bare right now. Malik Hooker could bring an elite playmaker to a defense that lacks a lot of that. He is my 2nd overall safety but is The second round we can look to either draft more wide receiver help, bulk our defensive or offensive line or even search for a corner to replace Pacman Jones. Names to look for would be DeMarcus Walker, defensive end from Florida State, Adoreé jackson, cornerback from USC, and Conor McDermott, tackle from UCLA. Like Ogbuehi, McDermott was regarded as a top tackle in this class in the preseason, but has since dropped off due to a poor season. Adoree Jackson is a do all athlete and could fill the hole of Pacman if he is released, but with him that would leave the secondary extremely young. In the 3rd round the bengals once again could go many ways, one being Malachi Dupre, wide receiver from LSU. If he is still on the board in the third round, the Bengals can sure up their wide receiving core with more young talent. I like Tyler Boyd, but Cody Core still has yet to prove anything for the Bengals, and Brandon LaFell isn’t getting any younger. On the other side of the ball, Geno Atkins could use a partner lining up next to him, and I believe Carlos Watkins would line up nicely with Atkins. The
Bengals weren’t terrible in the run game last year, but Peko has been on a drastic decline for several years. Watkins is 6’3, 300 lbs and can fill up gaps very well but also did have 10.5 sacks last season for Clemson. He produced at a high level in both playoff games, being a major reason why Clemson shut out Ohio State in the first round.
The Bengals have never been in the game of signing big names in free agency even when they have the cap space. This year, the Bengals have over $44 million to spend on tons of big name players, but first they should worry about their own free agents. The Bengals must sign their best offensive lineman, and the best free agent guard in this class, in Kevin Zeitler to save their offensive line from collapsing. He is going to cost most likely in the $10-$12 million a year range which brings us down to $32 million. Andrew Whitworth isn’t someone the Bengals can let go right now, even if he is the oldest tackle in this free agency class. Sign him on another 1 year or 2 year deal until Cedric Ogbuehi and Jake Fisher are figured out. I do think Ogbuehi has potential to be a good left tackle in the NFL in just hasn’t
been able to do much while injured, and Jake FIsher could really fill the right tackle mold for after Whitworth is gone. That will look to cost you probably $7 million a year, hopefully less, which brings us to $25 million left. Someone like Brandon Carr, who is coming off a revitalizing season, could look to receive around a 3-4 year deal at $5 million a year. If the Bengals do the smart move, and release Adam Jones, they will be extremely thin at cornerback and could have Carr come in and improve the veteran corner role that Jones had. Lets not forget the Bengals have not just one young cornerback, but two in WIlliam Jackson III, and Darqueze Dennard that need a good mentor ahead of them. We could look to sign Micah Hyde to help give our secondary some leadership as well. Dion Jordan has been a troubled player so far in his football career, but Marvin Lewis seems to fare well with troubled athletes. He would bring youth and talent to an old defensive line, and could probably find him at a cheap contract as well.
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