Stefen Wisniewski

[*ochocincos*]

The Bengals have an odd philosophy in terms of player expectations.

They say they don't like to rely on impactful contributions from their rookies. Based on that, you'd think they'd put more value into finding upgrades in FA while the rookies mature for at least a couple seasons...but they really don't.
The Bengals don't pursue what many deem as high-quality starters in FA because of 1) cost and 2) "not knowing the system".

This ultimately means that the team puts a TON of responsibility, expectations, and pressure on the existing Bengals players to step their games up year-to-year.

While in an ideal world, a player should improve every single year, but the reality is that players top out at some point. They simply can only achieve so much.

The Bengals also seem so concerned that they might decline that they pay above and beyond for players they know (e.g. Rey Maualuga) rather than taking a risk on a player that could potentially take them to the next level.

I believe all of the above is really what has caused this team to hit a plateau and why they haven't been able to go higher (yet).