Bengals Website Hints at a More Active Free Agency this Year

The Cincinnati Bengals are notoriously conservative in free agency. However, Bengals senior writer Geoff Hobson suggests the front office may be more active this off-season. 

For most fans who have followed the Cincinnati Bengals closely for any period of time, they don’t expect the front office to be very active when mid-March rolls around and the free agency period opens. That could be changing, however, according to Bengals senior writer Geoff Hobson,

"“It sounds like the Bengals are going to be more active in free agency than they have in the past, but Tobin is cautious because there is no market yet to be read and, well, he’s not going to say much else because it is the biggest poker game of the year. The stakes open in mid-March.”"

Hobson had this assessment to make after picking the brains of de-facto general manager Duke Tobin, head coach Zac Taylor, and defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo.

Also backing up the idea that the Bengals may bring in more outside free agents than usual is this quote from Taylor,

"“I’m on [the] same page with [the] front office to get what we need.”"

If the Bengals were ever going to pick a time to be active in free agency, now is the time to do it.

The team currently wields just under $45 million in cap space, according to Over The Cap. However, there is speculation they could increase that number in a hurry by getting the contracts of Andy Dalton ($17.7 Million), Cordy Glenn ($9.5 Million), and others off the books.

With Joe Burrow looking like the next franchise quarterback, the team could be eyeing to solidify the offensive line to give the young gunslinger plenty of protection. The free agency class for the position certainly offers plenty of options.

Several quality linebacker free agents are also set to hit the market, another area the Bengals could attack if they suddenly switch their spending philosophy.

However the front office decides to attack the rebuild, it’s encouraging to see the team considering a new approach to get back to contention.