5 potential left guard options for Cincinnati Bengals in 2022

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Laken Tomlinson (Photo by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images) /

The Cincinnati Bengals need to do a complete overhaul on their offensive line. One position that could remain the same in 2022 is at left guard but it’d still require the team to make a move in free agency, as Quinton Spain is a free agent.

Spain joined the Bengals in 2020 and had mixed results but they re-signed him last offseason on a one-year deal. He ended up playing well at left guard, finishing the season with a PFF grade of 72.3 while allowing five sacks and getting penalized four times.

If the Bengals do decide to re-sign Spain, it wouldn’t be a shock to anyone but they could also decide to go in another direction. Let’s take a look at five potential left guard options for Cincinnati in 2022.

5. Laken Tomlinson

I was hoping that Laken Tomlinson would go a little more under-the-radar entering free agency but that hasn’t been the case. And why would it be? The 30-year-old guard out of Duke is only getting better with age and made it to his first Pro Bowl this season.

Pro Football Focus has Tomlinson as their No. 26 best free agent this spring and has the 49ers guard projected to earn a three-year contract worth $27 million with $9 million annually and $16.5 million guaranteed.

This is a reasonable contract for a guy who is an excellent run blocker and just put together his best season as a pass blocker. He’s entering his age-30 season so anything more than a three-year deal might be a bit much but Tomlinson needs to be on Cincy’s radar.