A message to the rest of the beloved Cincinnati Bengals fan base out there from yours truly. Were I in charge of personnel, not Duke Tobin, I'd be working the phones around the clock to try to get this embarrassment of a defense better by any means necessary.
Until news of a splashy pre-NFL trade deadline move hits the transaction wire, I will be convinced that the Bengals aren't doing all they can to maximize the 2025 season.
The writing's been on the wall for a while that Cincinnati neglected its defense. That strategy reared its ugly head in Week 8's 39-38 loss to the New York Jets. Monday's trade news only piled on to the misery, even if it didn't relate to the Bengals in a super direct way.
Rams trade for Titans standout at a position Bengals are desperate for help
Tennessee Titans cornerback Roger McCreary went from the NFL equivalent of the outhouse to the penthouse, courtesy of ever-proactive Los Angeles Rams GM Les Snead.
McCreary isn't a household name. That's what you get when you play for the Titans. Nevertheless, he's a stellar nickelback and quality starter who the Rams got for cents on the dollar. All it took was a fifth-round pick in exchange for a Tennessee sixth-rounder, per NFL Media's Ian Rapoport.
Funnily enough, Los Angeles acquired that traded Day 3 asset from the Titans in another trade involving linebacker Ernest Jones IV. He lasted only four games in Nashville last season before Tennessee traded him to Seattle.
Is it too soon to bring up the fact that the Rams beat the Bengals in Super Bowl LVI?
Los Angeles won the big game by a mere three points. That's thanks in large part to Snead's willingness to do everything in his power to go all-in for a Lombardi Trophy every single season.
Not that 2022 first-round pick Dax Hill is a *total* disaster as Cincinnati's starting nickel. It's just that he's shown the most promise as a boundary cornerback. A cornerback corps starring DJ Turner and Hill on the outside with McCreary in the slot would be formidable. PFF ranks McCreary as the 38th-best cornerback in the NFL right now, whereas Hill checks in at 86th among 113 qualifiers.
The Bengals don't have the same ties to the Titans as they once did now that they fired ex-Cincinnati offensive coordinator Brian Callahan as their head coach. Still, now that we know McCreary could be had for such trivial compensation, it's disappointing to have missed out on him.
Much of the defensive issues plaguing Cincinnati are tied to the front seven and the unit's collective inability to tackle. Not a weakness you want to have when the defense's primary objective in tackle football is to, you know, tackle the opponent.
Based on the Bengals' long history of trade deadline inactivity, and the fact that they already swung a move for quarterback Joe Flacco, Who Dey Nation should brace for more of the same. McCreary moving on to LA is the latest proof of that.
No fewer than three stud Jets defensive linemen are ideal Cincinnati trade targets. Maybe that'd be a good starting point for Tobin and Co.