The Bengals have been plagued by a bad defense for two years straight now. It would be fair to say that if Cincinnati had invested in it's defense in 2024 or 2025, they could have easily landed a playoff birth, but instead they find themselves in a short playoff drought.
However, this year is different. The Bengals made serious investments into the defense, despite losing former NFL sack-leader Trey Hendrickson. They added the likes of Boye Mafe and Dexter Lawrence on the defensive line, added safety Bryan Cook, and made defensive draft picks such as Cashius Howell and Tacario Davis.
The d-line may not be Bengals' biggest offseason upgrade
When the first game of the season against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers rolls around, all the eyes will be on the defensive line, especially on Lawrence. ConsideringThe Bengals gave up their first-round pick to get him. This comes as no surprise, but he may not be the one to watch.
For a start, Mafe is expected to make a big difference to Cincinnati's defensive front, too, as he just came off a Super Bowl-winning year with Seattle. Also, Jonathan Allen provides much-needed depth and a veteran presence in the interior too.
But what if the biggest upgrade this offseason wasn't on the defensive line at all? There's a very strong case to suggest the Bengals' best defensive move was actually going from Geno Stone to Bryan Cook at safety.
Bryan Cook is a huge upgrade over Geno Stone
The Bengals signed Cook as a free agent after he has spent the past four years with one of the Bengals' biggest rivals in Kansas City. He won two Super Bowls during his time with the Chiefs and is now looking to bring that success to Cincinnati.
Looking at what the Bengals had last year in Geno Stone, the potential improvement at safety could be huge. Stone came with a good reputation, but he really failed to live up to it. Last season, he had a missed tackle rate of 20%, which, for a player who is virtually the last line of defense, is a big worry.
Meanwhile, Cook's missed tackle rate was just 5.6% last year, plus he also had more pass breakups, too, as he successfully defended six passes, compared to Stone's four. Seeing as Stone was one of the Bengals' biggest disappointments last year, we could see a massive visual improvement with Cook as the last line of defense, potentially reducing the number of long touchdowns Al Golden's defense gives up.
Those long touchdown plays can be the difference in a game, and if Cook can do a much better job of ensuring that final tackle, the Bengals' points allowed numbers could seriously drop. It wouldn't be a surprise if Cook became a real fan favourite this year.
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