Bengals BYE week questions
1. Is it time to give Tre Flowers or Vernon Hargreaves a chance?
Eli Apple has been the cornerback to fill in for Trae Waynes and to say he has struggled would be an understatement. After being blown by on a 60-yard touchdown from Donovan Peoples-Jones in the second quarter, it put into perspective why the Bengals needed a new cornerback until Trae Waynes is back (or IF Waynes is back, rather).
The Bengals recently signed Vernon Hargreaves lll and Tre Flowers, who have produced at a higher level than Eli Apple over the past 2-3 seasons. However, it’s time that the Bengals try someone new, starting alongside Chidobe Awuzie.
Heading into the most extensive stretch of the season, the margin of error for Cincinnati is slim. If Apple is blowing coverages and picking up costly penalties, it will set the Bengals back.
This week, Hargreaves will likely be activated to the 53-man roster, and Tre Flowers already has been for a few weeks now so it wouldn’t shock me to see Lou Anarumo change against the Las Vegas Raiders after the BYE week.
Fingers crossed that the Cincinnati Bengals answered these questions and are a better team coming out of the BYE!