Look for big things by the LA Rams kid from Stroudsburg, PA

Bengals Day of Reckoning is coming

No NFL team can pay for 22 Pro Bowl players to suit up for their team. Like it or not, every NFL personnel department is faced with the thankless task of embedding game-changing talent into their rosters and then filling out the remainder of those rosters with young talented players who hopefully outplay their contracts.

For the Cincinnati Bengals, they made choices in the off-season that may have led to short-changing their offensive line. Essentially, the team focused on their defense, investing in defensive lineman B.J. Hill, and as a result had to count on the likes of Trey Hopkins at the offensive center, and Hakeem Adeniji at right guard.  Per their final 2021 NFL season offensive line rankings, Pro Football Focus has the Bengals ranked 20th out of 32 teams. Both Hopkins and Adeniji are their weak links.

Playtime is over

Fox Sports NFL analyst Geoff Schwartz believes that the  Bengals Day of Reckoning is coming over their sub-average offensive line.  So far, the Bengals have gotten by on some luck, great defense, and the undeniable talent of second-year quarterback Joe Burrow. But just how long can their offensive line hold up with smoke and mirrors? Schwartz believes that time’s up.

I tend to agree.

Most of the focus on the Bengals’ offensive strategy of pass protection involves committing to stopping the LA Rams edge pass rushers. That’s cute. But there is a huge weakness in the middle of that offensive line and I think that is where the Rams defensive front will cause serious damage. In fact, I really love the matchups of the LA Rams interior defensive linemen like Greg Gaines, A’Shawn Robinson, and now Sebastian Joseph Day to the interior of that Bengals offensive line.