The Cincinnati Bengals’ most glaring weakness came back to haunt them on the biggest stage of all: the Super Bowl. For the past two years, the Bengals efforts to build an impenetrable wall in front of franchise quarterback, Joe Burrow, have fallen flat. Burrow was sacked 7 times and pressured on 26 total dropbacks in the Super Bowl. And once the Rams defensive line took over, the Bengals’ offense struggled to get going. After what we saw most of the season, it felt like an inevitable moment.
Despite an incredible season in which he completed an NFL-best 70.4 percent of his passes for 4611 yards and 34 touchdowns, Burrow was fed to the wolves. He was sacked a league-high 51 times in just the regular season alone and another 19 times in the postseason – an NFL playoff record. It’s incredible that the Bengals got as far as they did without a functional offensive line, and the numbers and performance of Burrow was just as impressive.
But it can’t happen again. Ever. Not if the Bengals want to remain a mainstay in the AFC and contend for another Super Bowl. Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and the rest of the offense are here to stay, as is their much improved defense. But they can’t let Burrow take that sort of beating again. It’s time the Bengals properly commit to upgrading their offensive line.
In the last three drafts, the Bengals have selected five offensive linemen. Jonah Williams, Hakeem Adeniji, Jackson Carman, D’Ante Smith, and Trey Hill. It’s still early in their development, but so far, Williams looks like the only potential building block, and even then, he allowed 10 sacks and 51 total pressures in the regular season and postseason.
In terms of PFF grades, four of the seven Bengals linemen who played at least 500 snaps in the regular season and playoffs had an offensive grade of below 55.0, with Trey Hopkins, Isaiah Prince, and Adeniji finishing among the bottom 30 out of over 220 qualified players.
Adeniji only played in nine games in 2021 but allowed 23 pressures and three sacks in just 350 pass-blocking snaps. Carman has been in and out of the lineup with mixed results, but the Bengals used a second-round pick on the former Clemson guard, so the hope is he’s just a late bloomer. The line still needs to be upgraded, though.
Poor offensive line play hampered the Bengals and impacted every facet of their offense. They averaged just 4 yards per rushing attempt, 26th in the NFL and relied on volume rather than efficiency when running the ball. It also completely changes the way a team can operate in playcalling. Longer developing pass plays are practically moot when your offensive line is 30th in pass block win rate.
The worst-case scenario of inept offensive line play has already been seen for the Bengals, in Burrow’s rookie season. After 32 sacks in just 10 games, Burrow suffered a torn ACL in his left knee that ruled him out for the rest of the year. The fact the Bengals didn’t invest a significant amount of money into solidifying the line in the off-season is frustrating, even if they did use a high draft pick on Carman.
There’s the argument that they should have drafted Penei Sewell with the fifth overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, but that argument should be put to bed. Chase was pivotal in helping the Bengals get to the Super Bowl while putting together the greatest season by a rookie wide receiver in NFL history. Sewell would have bolstered the offensive line, but he wouldn’t have made the same impact as Chase.
Rather than relitigating past decisions, the Bengals are in a position to focus on the future. By improving a team that were minutes away from winning its first-ever Super Bowl. The Bengals will still be a good team next year, but after making the Super Bowl, regression is only natural. So, the front office needs to counter that any way they can.
That starts with making a pledge to build an offensive line worthy of winning a Lombardi Trophy. A unit that can protect their star quarterback while he’s still in his prime – and on his rookie contract. They can go about it any way they want. Terron Armstead, Brandon Scherff and a host of other impressive linemen are available in free agency, and the Bengals have the cap to make a run at them. They have the 31st overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, but there has to be an emphasis on nurturing and improving their younger talent too, otherwise drafting the likes of Carman, Adeniji and Williams could be moot.
The Bengals have a litany of options at their disposal, but the end goal remains the same: Protect the asset. Protect Burrow at all costs.
-Thomas Valentine
Twitter: @ThomasValenfine