4 free agents that the Bengals were wise to pass on in 2022 offseason

C.J. Uzomah

Unlike some Bengals fans, I don't hate C.J. Uzomah for leaving the Bengals in the offseason. He had an opportunity to make a ton of money with another team, so he took it. Football is a business and Uzomah was trying to get the most out of his business.

It was hard to lose Uzomah and the presence he had in the Bengals' locker room but Cincinnati was right not pay him what the Jets got him for (three years, $24 million). To replace Uzomah, Cincinnati signed Hayden Hurst to a one-year deal worth a little over $3 million and the guy has 400 yards receiving and two touchdowns to Uzomah's 178 yards and two touchdowns.

It's worth noting that had Uzomah returned to the Bengals, he'd have been TE1 and had more than 178 yards at this point but the team would have had to pay him more money than they did with Hurst. That's why this was a smart decision by them.

I'll always be a fan of Uzomah wherever he goes but the Bengals absolutely made the right decision to let him go elsewhere.