Tour de Bengals: Which players would win cycling’s prestigious jerseys?

If you're reading this, it's probably too late to catch the "Grand départ," or the first stage of the Tour de France. But it's not too late to tune in to watch the rest of the 112th edition of the Super Bowl of cycling. And, in honor of one of, if not the, most grueling sports in the world, we decided to bring back the Tour de France, Cincinnati Bengals edition. 

The Tour de France is the equivalent of the Super Bowl of racing. It is one of three “Grand Tours,” along with the Giro d’Italia and the Vuelta a España. Think of the Tour of Italy and the Tour of Spain as the conference Championship Games. 

Within the Tour de France, there are four prestigious jerseys up for grabs at the end of the three-week contest. And that is what we are determining here. Which Bengals players deserve to take home those prestigious leader jerseys? While you've already probably guessed who was going to take home the overall winner's jersey, there are a couple of surprises on this list.

Yellow Jersey, overall winner (Maillot Jaune)

Just like on an NFL football team, there are individual goals, glory, and immortality to earn. But the ultimate goal is to create a team strong enough to capture the yellow jersey winner.

Not unlike this year's edition of the Tour de France, the winner of this Bengals edition is predetermined. 

We are not going out on a limb to say that Tadej Pogačar will win the Tour de France. That is, unless something unexpected happens. And, it should be no surprise that the yellow jersey winner for the Cincinnati Bengals is Joe Burrow. There isn't much suspense with these nominations. Hopefully, there will be a bit more doubt and drama during the race. 

Just like a general classification rider leads his team, Burrow is the unquestioned motor that allows the Bengals team to run at full throttle. At the Tour de France, when you have a general classification rider who is capable of winning the tour, teams will do everything to protect him throughout the three-week race. Teams must surround their leader with teammates who are as capable as he is to help ensure the best path to victory. 

Despite any doubts that we or the outside world have, we hope that the moves the Bengals have made this offseason will significantly improve their protection of their leader, as they have in recent years.

And that leads us to our next category winner, the polka dot jersey.

Polka Dot Jersey, King of the mountain (Maillot à Pois)

The King of the Mountain jersey isn't the most prestigious jersey. However, it is a symbol of being the best mountain climber at the Tour while contributing to the team's overall success. That is precisely what we need out of Amarius Mims and his second season with the team.

Admittedly, Mims is more of a hopeful recipient rather than a truly deserving one. We must count on him to improve his play while also elevating the overall performance of the entire offensive line. According to Pro Football Focus, Mims ranked 96th out of 140 eligible tackles. They gave him a below-stellar 57.8 overall grade.

While he showed promise, there is still considerable room for improvement. That might be asking a lot of the second-year lineman out of Georgia. Nevertheless, that is precisely why Cincinnati took him in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft.

Hopefully, Mims will become a stonewall offensive lineman who is as punishing against pass rushers as the Pyrenees is on cyclists' legs during the mountain stages of the Tour de France. If so, he will be a considerable piece in helping Burrow and the offense navigate the treacherous peloton of pass rushers Cincinnati will face throughout the season. And in doing so, he can reach the highest of heights as far as what an elite offensive lineman can be.

Surely, one of the American teams, EF Education-EasyPost or Lidl-Trek, could customize a bike kit to accommodate the not-so-normal size that Mims would command.

Green Jersey, fastest sprinter (Maillot Vert)

While the yellow jersey goes to the overall winner of the Tour de France, there exists another race within the race. The green jersey classification goes to the best sprinter throughout the three-week competition. The winner of that particular prize earns the coveted green jersey and the title of “the fastest man” in the competition.

While this may shock some fans, the green jersey winner for the Cincinnati Bengals goes to running back Chase Brown.

According to Next Gen Stats, Brown is the sixth-fastest player in the NFL since they started recording players' on-field speed. In 2023, Brown reached 22.05 mph on a touchdown reception against the Indianapolis Colts. That was the second fastest time of the 2023 season, just behind DK Metcalf's 22.23 mph. 

Brown’s 22.05 mph ranks 12th among all NFL ball carriers since 2016, according to Next Gen Stats. Brown is the 10th fastest player during that time. No other Cincinnati player has eclipsed that mark. The closest is DJ Turner's 21.89 last season.

Heading into the 2025 season, SportsBoom ranks Brown as the third fastest player in the NFL. He sits behind only Tyreek Hill and DK Metcalf. Ja’Marr Chase ranks ninth. 

Brown's speed and acceleration are always on display whenever Burrow turns to hand them the ball. He is just one of several versatile weapons at the disposal of the offensive coaching staff. 

Hopefully, we will witness Brown break off several explosive runs throughout the 2025 season, which will allow him to showcase his excellent speed and reach, or even surpass, the mark he has already set for himself.

White Jersey, best young rider (Maillot Blanc)

The winner of the White Jersey at the Tour de France goes to the best overall placed young rider in the peloton. It can go to the overall winner if he meets the qualification of being 26 years old or younger. However, for this exercise, we limit the pool of White Jersey-eligible recipients to rookies, first-year players, or second-year players.

Among the leaders, the jerseys awarded here, the white jersey recipient was the closest contest. If it were not for winning the Polka dot jersey, the honor would go to Mims. However, after much consideration, this award goes to defensive tackle Chris Jenkins Jr.

Jenkins finished his rookie campaign with 31 tackles, three tackles for loss, three sacks, and five quarterback hits. His three sacks tied for the most among rookie defensive tackles. His five quarterback hits were the third most among rookies, defensive tackles.

As a second-round selection in the 2024 draft, Jenkins is one of several players on the defensive side of the ball who must step up for the Bengals to make it back into the playoffs and have a sustained run once they are there. He must play a role in turning around a heavily-criticized defense after a less-than-stellar 2024 season. 

The expectation is that Jenkins will live up to his early draft status and the promising end of his rookie campaign, which included a two-sack game against the rival Cleveland Browns. 

This year’s Tour de France will end in a way that it never has before, with an unprecedented parcours through Paris culminating in the crowning of the prestigious jersey winners.

Perhaps the 2025 NFL season will end similarly, resulting in a Super Bowl victory for a team that has never reached the top of that particular mountain, the Cincinnati Bengals. And if that were to happen, it would be thanks to the efforts of Burrow and his supporting cast, which includes Mims, Brown, and Jenkins.