Bengals can't move forward with Jonah Williams as their starting LT

One thing has become crystal clear during the Cincinnati Bengals' 4-4 start to the 2022 regular season -- Jonah Williams is not the left tackle of the future.

For starters, Williams has not improved since he's been with the team. He had his worst game of the season this past Monday night when the Browns defenders continued to blow past him and furthermore, he's surrendered the most sacks in the league with eight, per PFF.

Speaking of PFF, Williams' grades there aren't anything to write home about. He has a 61.0 overall grade and sits with a 59.0 pass-blocking grade and 54.2 run-blocking grade. Not ideal for a guy the team spent a first-round pick on in 2019.

Jonah Williams isn't the answer at LT

Williams missed his entire rookie year due to injury and then missed another six games in 2020 due to the injury bug biting him again. By the time he was entering his third season, the Bengals had to see something from him or he'd be an easy player to part with after his rookie deal was up.

Williams played decently in 2021, however, finishing with a 77.1 overall PFF grade while scoring 68.8 in pass-blocking and 79.8 in run-blocking. All of his numbers are down this year and while he's under contract for 2023 due to the Bengals picking up his fifth-year option, they can't roll with him as their starting left tackle next year.

At this point, the team either needs to go after a left tackle in free agency or try their luck at someone in the draft. They haven't done well when it comes to drafting offensive linemen but it's better to try that than to roll Williams out there again next year. He can't be the starter in 2023 and that's become abundantly clear.