The day after all final rosters are due is always a wild one. As NFL teams scramble to add recently cut players via the waiver wire, the Cincinnati Bengals continue to work some magic. It’s been pretty interesting to see the Bengals already making moves with the ones at tight end being the most glaring.
So far today, tight end O.J. Howard is being hosted by the Bengals with signs pointing that they’ll more than likely sign him to a contract. It remains to be seen at the time of this writing if he will get signed but it would be great to see what he would ultimately add to the Bengals’ offense.
Then, a few hours later, news hit that the Bengals claimed tight end Devin Asiasi via waivers. Apparently, he was expecting to be added to the practice squad of the New England Patriots but the Bengals swooped him up before that could officially happen. At any rate, seeing general manager Mike Brown try to find those hidden gems in the rough continues to set the tone this offseason.
Bengals adding more tight ends makes sense to solidify the positional group
Why are the Bengals in a mad dash to keep adding more players to their tight end situation? Well, looking at it from a football point of view, it makes a lot of sense in the grand scheme of things. Obviously, with a young franchise quarterback in Jow Burrow, having a reliable tight end is a great security blanket to have when offensive plays fall apart.
It should also help when it comes to having an extra layer of pass protection on rushing plays and especially in quick play-action plays to tight ends to convert short-yardage situations into first downs. It remains to be seen if either Howard or Asiasi will be on the active roster or stashed away on the practice squad but it’s a smart thing to do now rather than later. Having high-quality play from the tight end position can be immensely helpful for Burrow in the long run.
If anything, these potential two new tight ends added to the Bengals at least add some good depth to the roster. Both Howard and Asiasi have more than enough playing experience to step right in and help the cause when needed.