O captain, my captain! For anyone who thought Logan Wilson being elected to such an esteemed leadership post for the first time in his career meant he was with the Cincinnati Bengals for the long haul, think again.
The writing was on the wall that Wilson's time in Cincinnati was coming to a close when Zac Taylor, Al Golden, and the Bengals staff decided to relegate the veteran linebacker to backup duties recently. Rookie fourth-rounder Barrett Carter received the green dot helmet, and that was that.
Thursday marked the official beginning of the end for Wilson in the Queen City. It's a sad occasion for Who Dey Nation and for a player who was so pivotal to the team's Super Bowl LVI run and another AFC Championship Game.
Bengals captain Logan Wilson officially requests trade amid risky youth movement
ESPN's Ben Baby broke the news that Logan Wilson demanded a trade. The story even featured comments from Carter about how Wilson hasn't harbored any hard feelings since his demotion.
"It hasn't changed our relationship at all...I still lean on him heavily with stuff, still ask him questions every single day. He's been a great leader, just like the man he is since the day I got here."
I had the privilege of interviewing Wilson before the season began, and as his reputation suggests by all accounts, he was nothing but a class act. An injury cut his 2024 campaign short as the Bengals rattled off five straight wins, and I was bullish on how his return could be a boon to the unit this year.
Unfortunately, Wilson didn't do enough in the coaching staff's eyes to merit his status as the heart of the Cincinnati's front seven.
We'll get to what this means for the Bengals going forward in a minute. As far as Wilson's trade suitors go, any team with a need at the linebacker position would be lucky to have him.
The San Francisco 49ers have kicked the tires on a potential Trey Hendrickson trade of late since Nick Bosa is out for the season. They just lost All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner to a brutal injury, too, so it'd make sense for the Niners to acquire Wilson for far less than it'd cost to land Hendrickson.
That's the main contender who jumps to mind as a fit to land Wilson's services. My colleague Marcus Mosher tossed out the Dallas Cowboys as a possibility. I'm too sad to ponder any other landing spot at the minute.
I've criticized Cincinnati's draft strategies for quite some time now. Using two picks in the first four rounds of the 2025 draft on off-ball linebackers is a bold strategy. Even bolder? Starting both of them, especially when you have more experienced impact players like Wilson and Oren Burks at the position.
The linked write-up on Carter a while back suggested the Bengals already regret drafting him. Guess that was proven wrong. Not that I'm rooting against Knight or Carter to succeed, but this just seems like a preemptive, rash decision to thrust Carter into action in particular.
Carter and Knight rank 66th and 73rd respectively out of 77 qualifying linebackers in PFF's grades. Wilson stands at 47th. Seems like a steep drop-off to me.
At least Burks exists as a contingency plan in the event Knight or Carter don't develop as Cincinnati would like. All Burks did for the Eagles was start in place of an injured Nakobe Dean in the playoffs and dominate in helping Philadelphia win the latest Super Bowl!
What's most sad is the Bengals once again alienating one of their core players to the extent that he wants out of town. They've done the same to Hendrickson and Tee Higgins within the last two years. Here's to Wilson's epic legacy as a Bengals, and all the best to him wherever he winds up next.