The Cincinnati Bengals obviously need to look outside the building for help in the aftermath of a 6-11 season. Their defense must improve. That's obvious. It's also key to ensure the offense is still humming with Joe Burrow under center, too.
Hopefully the Bengals can maintain the improvement on their offensive line and running game that they showed for much of the 2025 campaign after the first month. Right guard Dalton Risner is a big part of that. Let's pray Cincinnati has the common sense to re-sign him.
Seldom will you hear anyone discuss the tight end position on the offseason priority list.
Mike Gesicki, Tanner Hudson, and Drew Sample comprise a decent group of players who all contributed this past season. However, there's one prospective difference-maker who could be poised for a monster bounce-back year.
Erick All Jr. is an X-factor who'd give Bengals a needed, legit TE2
When the Bengals drafted Erick All Jr. 110th overall in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, they knew he came with medical red flags. Knee and back injuries plagued his collegiate career at Michigan and in his one season at Iowa.
Wouldn't you know it, the injury bug bit All again as a rookie — and hard. He re-tore the ACL he'd torn at Iowa in October 2023.
A tough series of breaks for All to be sure, but when he was healthy enough to take the field as a rookie, he made a big impression. In fact, had his knee recovery not gone awry, All would have a real argument as the best pick from that mostly-dreadful Bengals 2024 draft class.
That's a big "if" of course, as is counting on All to meaningfully contribute this coming season. then again, assuming he recovers in earnest from his latest injury setback, it'd be fascinating to see what he could do.
On 22 targets in 2024, All had 20 catches for 158 yards. Quite the rapport built with Joe Burrow, considering All missed the offseason program his rookie year before being cleared for training camp.
If All can just sub in as an aggressive run blocker and occasional pass-catcher, he'd open up the Bengals' offense so much. All is a supreme athlete, so even if that troublesome knee has caused him to lose some of his explosiveness, he's still plenty dynamic enough to be a dependable TE2 as a blocker and a receiving threat.