Fansided
Stripe Hype
Home/Bengals News

Cincinnati Bengals: Worse in 2019? Not by a Long Shot

lbaker
LANDOVER, MD - AUGUST 15: Head coach Zac Taylor of the Cincinnati Bengals looks on against the Washington Redskins during the first half of a preseason game at FedExField on August 15, 2019 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD - AUGUST 15: Head coach Zac Taylor of the Cincinnati Bengals looks on against the Washington Redskins during the first half of a preseason game at FedExField on August 15, 2019 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 7
Next
CINCINNATI, OH – AUGUST 22: Oshane Ximines #53 of the New York Giants tries to get around the block of O’Shea Dugas #70 of the Cincinnati Bengals during the preseason game at Paul Brown Stadium on August 22, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
CINCINNATI, OH – AUGUST 22: Oshane Ximines #53 of the New York Giants tries to get around the block of O’Shea Dugas #70 of the Cincinnati Bengals during the preseason game at Paul Brown Stadium on August 22, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

Offensive Line

First, Cordy Glenn and Bobby Hart are still the tackles. So, at least those positions didn’t get worse. Yes, Jonah Williams getting injured hurt, but let’s not forget that Cordy Glenn is still a legitimate NFL left tackle grading as the best tackle in pass protection this preseason according to Pro Football Focus.

In a previous article, I wrote about how the scheme that is being brought over from Los Angeles could improve the play of the existing lineman simply by using pre-snap movement to slow down defenders. There is reason to believe that the existing offensive line can play better than last season, even if it the team didn’t add any talent, but they did, replacing Alex Redmond with John Miller at right guard. As seen below, this is an upgrade

You can choose to view Trey Hopkins winning the starting center job over former first rounder Billy Price negatively. However, all it really means is that the new coaching staff is serious about putting the best players on the field. This is something that the previous coaches were often criticized for not doing. It is very clear Hopkins won the position by his play on the field as highlighted by @PFF_Bengals in the following post.

Then there is Christian Westerman. At this point, Bengals fans need to accept that it wasn’t just the previous coaching regime holding him back from taking a starting job. He clearly had the physical attributes that made him stand out while watching film, but lacked something in his game that prevented two separate coaching staffs from committing to him. However, as the saying goes, when one door closes…

facebooktwitterreddit