The Cincinnati Bengals upgraded at left tackle with Orlando Brown Jr. in their quest to protect Joe Burrow.
James Rapien shares his free agency grades for every Bengals signing, including Nick Scott, Irv Smith Jr. and their latest addition: Tarell Basham!
He also talks about the departures of Jessie Bates, Vonn Bell, Hayden Hurst and gives a final grade for what Cincinnatj has done in free agency
00:00 Intro
01:41 Orlando Brown Jr
04:25 Nick Scott
05:56 Sidney Jones
07:05 Cody Ford
07:56 Irv Smith Jr.
10:00 Tarell Basham
11:58 Overall Grade
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Music / CBT Intro Credits:
Mechanolith by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100879
Artist: http://incompetech.com/
41 Comments
I was more worried about keeping Germaine "Playoff P" Pratt & watching 57 hit his prime in another uniform
If we take Zeke, that would be a 'c' grade acquisition. I'm willing to bet that coach Lou will find a rookie free agent from a mid major school that will turn into an 'a' acquisition with the safety or corner back position (if we don't draft one).
I'm not necessarily worried about free agents as much as I am about the draft. Good young replacements coming in would be great for the long haul
The free agent signing is what the team performs when they start playing, if Joe Burrow on his back again then no, if the defence can’t stop anyone then no if they draft as bad as last year then no if they can’t pass rush again then no if they can’t beat the elite pass rusher teams again then no. The only question can they win the Super Bowl if yes then it is good
Our secondary looks terrible, hopefully we can get Brain Branch or address that down the road
All free agents signing are backups from other teams except Orlando Brown I can’t imagine them turn turn to pro bowlers. Let us see can they make a difference? They didn’t for their previous teams still need a good pass rusher, TE , RB ,CB ,DT , RT depth WR ,depth OL putting way to much pressure on Joe Burrow to make it work with dumb Zack Taylor on the helm
Running the ball successfully is a must can they do it with good RB on the team
Charbonnet at 60 will hopefully be the answer at RB. He's perfect for this offense.
Cody Ford hurts our grade absolutely worst on this roster hopefully he is cut in camp
DONT FORGET CHRIS LAMMONS OFF WAIVERS 👀
Being generous on Cody Ford James c minus d minus or f you were trying to not make him feel bad
Tbh I’d rather get younger and cheaper for RB and draft 1 in the second round we need a guy who can run in the flats and get easy yards with incredible athleticism
They've done okay, replacing some key players with affordable people. I'm optimistic about the draft.
L. Collins will come back stronger
Yes,there will be some learning curves along the way for Dax Hill and Nick Scott,along with Tycen Anderson as well. But these guys are gamers man,with excellent speed and great ball skills. The Bengals are actually more athletic and faster at the safety spot. Come week 5 this group will really hone in on Lou Anarumo’s scheme and play really good football. And it’s okay if our secondary takes a few weeks to develop in Lou’s scheme,because our offense is going to carry us the first quarter of the season. The offense knows they can’t rest O lineman and Burrow the entire preseason. They know they have to start fast and be ready come week 1 of the season. I like our moves so far this season,we are younger and more talented team than last year’s! Now we just nail the draft and we are ready to go!! Who Dey!
Nice work James as usual 🐯
Quit talking about zeke… hes been shit soup sandwich since he got in the nfl
No the Bengals don’t just all of a sudden think Jonah Williams can play right tackle. They hope he can play right tackle. They never even considered moving him anywhere until we signed Brown. It was never even discussed. I think they should trade Jonah and either draft a tackle or let the guys we have compete for the job. If Jonah stays this year he will be competing for the right tackle job. It’s not just Jonahs job because he is here. They will put the best player on the field. Jonah has to beat out Dante Smith, Jackson Carman, Hakeem Adeniji, Cody Ford, Lael Collins if he is ready to play AND whichever tackle we draft. So ALL of those people will be competing for the right tackle job. If Lael Collins was healthy he would be starting at right tackle. I hope they trade Jonah at some point because we really need a cheap good right tackle and we can draft one this year. I don’t see them drafting a tackle in round 1 if Jonah is still on the team. Im not sure you realize how bad Jonah was last year at left tackle his best and preferred position. He was tied for giving up the most sacks. Tied with a rookie. I really don’t think Jonah is very good. He is barely average. He was below average last year. Besides he wants to leave. Got news for him though no team is going to play him at left tackle not after what everyone saw last year. I hope they trade him for whatever they can get and I hope we draft a tackle in round 1 or 2 and move on. Maybe Jonah would be better in an easier division. He was grading in the low 40’s in run blocking last year. That is attrocious.
Bengals defense will be hurting next year. Burrow is gonna have to get his arm strength better and GET THE BALL 2 Ja’Marr Chase DAMNIT!!!!
They did well in free agency. It helped set them up for the draft and finally being able to protect Joe. I would go OT in first round, TE second round; RB third round, DT or Edge in fourth round. I’m also not against bringing in Zeke for a discussion on “fit” and a physical.
Little learning at first with new players but the last two seasons started a little rocky and then about mid season they just started playing great together so don't freak out early this year
They have done such a good job of topping off the roster over FA, the draft, second round FA, and then just filling a few spots through camp and the preseason. Can't wait to see the roster in September.
The losses of Bates, Bell, Hurst, and Perine really HURT!!!!! Brown and Irv Smith were excellent gets, the rest were so-so. Grade of a solid C+…………………….
Think about last year, if we had a better offensive line at the end of the game. To many injuries. A deep offensive line is vital. Everyone will be all over blitzing at the end if it is close. They won't be able to do that anymore. Definately need a tight end that can block well.
Basham is a solid B. Perfect for rotations.
If I were to give them an A, they’d need to extend Burrow and Higgins, draft at any two of the following: Mayer, Kinkaid, Washington, Kuntz, Robinson, Gibbs, Charbonnet, or Vaughn.
The safeties will be fine! unfortunately that's the expendable position ! Safeties just have to do their job nothing more
If la'el can get healthy and be what he once showed, he can be. Then the line is going to be fine. Otherwise, the RT position is a liability. No question.
Saftey: 2022 > 2023// lost Bates,Bell…gained Scott
Corner: 2022 > 2023// lost Apple,Flower..gained Jones
Running Back: 2022 > 2023// lost Perine..gained -0-
TIght End: 2022 > 2023// lost Hurst, Sample, Wilcox…gained Smith Jr
Offense Line: 2022 < 2023// lost Collins?…gained Brown Jr, Ford
Defense Line: 2032 < 2023// Lost -0-…gained Basham
I give them a C+/B-…Hopefully they nail the draft because this team is worse in a few spots from last year. At least they focused on the trenches. Is nobody else worried about lack of a backup Center?
No I wouldn't sign up for that he's not the whole team 🛑 the 🧢
Sorry sam Hubbard is not a great pass rusher I like Joe to play more on his side he's going to be a great pass rusher
Too soon. They signed someone else since this went up. Give the grade at the end.
To me it’s stunning how we continue to get younger and cheaper at all of our positions. Nick Scott, Irv Smith, Sidney Jones, and the draft to go. They’re doing everything they need to do to be and stay competitive for a decade plus
PersonallyI think they will be fine at safety.Bates is not worth what he got in free agency.Dax Hill was a 1st round pick for a reason.He will be a good player.Nick Scott at the other safety position will be fine.The Bengals got where they are because of Burrow and the offense.
A+ for Cincinnati Bengals Talk.
Keep up the great work, James.
The Ceiling is the Roof!
Too bad there is no running back content. Seems all there is to talk about is what has' happened'. With Perine and Mixon. Little or nothing about what we are doing about the position. Plenty of Speculation. Gotta think. Hope. They are going to pull a rabbit out of the hat. Make it two. Big big hard running rabbits. Ok. Chuck the rabbit comparisons. That's weird. Who Dey
Yeaaa babyyyyyyyy folks we got Terrel Bashm the best pass rusher EVER EVER I am so excited I can’t hide it more than 25 sacks is my minimum expectation. I can see ther terrors inside the eyes of all NFL quarterbacks because of mr Bashem
How confidents you are in LG Cordella volston the worst LG according to PFF
A+
That just shows what a team player and consumate professional Andrew Miller is. Keep up the great work
I'm not willing to compare obj to whit just yet. Obj don't stack up at this point. He's great player and hopefully he will get there but y'all disrespecting whit. I would trade a 26 year old obj for a 26 year old whit without hesitating. Whit all day. Not saying obj won't get there. Obj is definitely what the Dr ordered. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Whit is da shit!