5 players on the Bengals roster who are being vastly underrated

4. D.J. Reader

With such a good defensive line, the middle man is often overlooked, and in this case, that is exactly what is happening to D.J. Reader.

DJ had a PFF rating of 80.8 overall last season being one of the highest-rated defenders on the defense. The reason he is so underrated is due to his not so shocking numbers he puts out when he plays.

He recorded only two sacks and 29 solo tackles with nine assists all numbers that don’t drop the jaw of the viewers of the team. These numbers don’t show the effect he has on the field as he attracts numerous double teams on the interior of the line giving the likes of Trey Hendrickson and Sam Hubbard the ability to shine on the outside of the defensive line. There’s also B.J. Hill on the interior of the line who gets one on ones due to the sheer dominance Reader has on the inside.

Reader was the highest-graded run defender in the NFL with a PFF rating of 86 which shows how scary he really is as a player. This is the reason he is so respected by opposing offenses as he just eats up the holes in the run while still putting pressure on the quarterback when he plays on passing downs.

The numbers may not show why Reader received such a big deal from Cincinnati but when you dive into the deeper statistics you will learn quickly why he is so underrated as an interior lineman.