4 new faces who will make the biggest impact for Bengals in 2022
By Ty Robbins
2. Ted Karras
Two people you can guarantee will touch the ball every down are the center and the quarterback, so those positions must be filled with highly qualified players. With Burrow being one of those players, the Bengals needed to upgrade at center, and they did with Ted Karras.
The #Bengals are signing OL Ted Karras to a 3-year, $18M deal, source said.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 14, 2022
Karras was signed during free agency to play center after spending five out of his six years with Bill Belichick and the Patriots. Karras has tons of experience, including winning two Super Bowls with New England.
With a PFF grade of 72.2 and only allowing three sacks in 2021, Karras has the experience and knowledge to make the calls at the offensive line to help tighten up the protection, so Burrow has the time to dissect opposing defenses.
When speaking to Dave Lapham on his In the Trenches podcast, Karras said, “I thought we had a great Spring as a team, as a unit, and as a position group, and I am excited for what we are going to do.”
Karras’ high intelligence will be like having another coach on the field, which should ease the pressure off of Burrow, knowing the offensive line has a rock-solid commander and that the protections are taken care of so that Burrow can focus on scoring. I can not see a more significant impact than that.