The Bengals Offensive Line has been a major project in Cincinnati over the past few offseasons. In 2020 and in 2021, the offensive line was close to being the worst offensive line in football and the team has made serious efforts to improve.
Bengals Offensive Line 2021 Offseason Moves
Following the 2020 season with a disastrous performance at the right tackle position, Cincinnati went out and found a replacement at the right tackle position after star quarterback Joe Burrow suffered a season-ending ACL tear due to the porous performances of the offensive line. In the offseason, Burrow personally worked on the recruiting effort as he managed to convince former Dallas Cowboys left tackle La’el Collins.
Collins struggled to put forth a consistent effort but after an incredible improvement in form by Burrow, Cincinnati made a Super Bowl run. The interior of the offensive line was exposed against the might of Defensive Player of the Year and Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald . It became clear to Cincinnati that the job wasn’t done yet.
Bengals Offensive Line 2022 Offseason Moves
Following the disastrous performance by the interior of the offensive line during the super bowl, Cincinnati decided to make a massive overhaul with the interior of their offensive line. Cincinnati would go out and sign free agents Ted Karras from the New England Patriots to play center and guard Alex Cappa from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Cincinnati would also find a diamond in the rough in the fourth round of the NFL Draft when they found Cordell Volson out of North Dakota State. Volson would ultimately win the job at starting guard for the 2022 season.
While the offensive line was clearly a dramatic improvement over 2022, the group still struggled in the 2022 season. The unexpected problem was left tackle Jonah Williams, the 11th overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. Williams had been fairly consistent for Cincinnati but performed terrible in 2022 as he was graded as the worst offensive tackle in the NFL. Cincinnati clearly still had work to do.
Bengals Offensive Line 2023 Offseason Moves
Finally, in the past offseason, Cincinnati made the latest attempt to right the ship when they poached starting left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. from conference rival Kansas City as a replacement for Williams at right tackle. Williams was furious as he demanded a trade immediately after the news broke but ultimately was willing to make the shift at right tackle, essentially pushing out Cincinnati’s original patchwork La’el Collins.
With the offensive tackle positions seemingly fixed this season, Cincinnati has performed substantially better on the offensive line and as the line typically works, the group has dramatically improved as the season has gone on. Last week against the Indianapolis Colts, the entire offense seemed to click.
While PFF asserts that the group did show a slight regression in terms of their run blocking with Karras and Kappa expectedly both putting in low numbers against All-Pro defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, the line as a whole did a tremendous job protecting quarterback Jake Browning against an elite Colts defensive front.
🚨Week 14 Grades🚨
Overall Grades
Best: Orlando Brown Jr. – 88.98🔥
Worst: Alex Cappa – 66.10Run Blocking
Best: Orlando Brown Jr. – 91.94👀
Worst: Cordell Volson/Alex Cappa – 50.00Pass Protection
Best: Jonah Williams – 100.00📈
“Worst”: Ted Karras – 80.36👀3 Pressures,… pic.twitter.com/LaFuWFiGj2
— Parker Blake (@ParkerBlake60) December 12, 2023
Most significantly, Brown and Williams each put in their best games on the edge while doing excellent jobs shutting down the pass rush of Indianapolis. The group as a whole gave up a total of three pressures and zero sacks. If the offensive line can maintain this level of productivity, Cincinnati could make a serious run into the playoffs.
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