7 Cincinnati Bengals free agents we will sadly miss in 2022

6. B.J. Hill

The Bengals sent former first-round pick Billy Price to the Giants in exchange for B.J. Hill in a trade that no one really focused on too much at the time. Cincinnati most definitely won the trade, however, as Hill has been fantastic in his inaugural season with the Bengals.

The former Giant has 50 tackles, 12 QB hits, and 5.5 sacks through 16 games and two starts. No one expected this kind of production from Hill when he was acquired but he’s been a tremendous addition to this defense.

The hope is that the Bengals can bring him back for 2022 and beyond but if they can’t, he’ll be a huge departure for them.

5. Eli Apple

After a rough start to the season, fans would have laughed if you had told them that Eli Apple would be someone the team should re-sign in the offseason. That’s exactly the situation we’re in, however, as Apple has bounced back in a big way.

The former first-round pick has jumped around the league since going 10th overall to the Giants. He spent a season and a half in New York before getting shipped to New Orleans for another season and a half, spent a year in Carolina, and then ended up in Cincinnati in the offseason. It’s worked out well for both sides and Apple could be due for a nice raise this spring.

https://twitter.com/willie_lutz/status/1475470048504553481?s=20

Willie Lutz provided this gem of a tweet before the Bengals’ win over KC about how well Apple had been playing in recent weeks. It’d be foolish for Cincy not to try and re-sign Apple considering how well he’s played and his age (he’s just 26 years old, turning 27 in August), and the guy has seemed to enjoy playing in the Queen City.

If Apple were to depart in the offseason, it’d be a massive blow to the Bengals’ secondary.