02-17-2019, 07:34 PM
Cincinnati Bengals
2 OF 6
Joe Robbins/Getty Images
Why they need to rebuild
Veteran quarterback Andy Dalton has regressed on paper and empirically the last couple of seasons, and it's become apparent that both Dalton, 31, and top wide receiver A.J. Green, 30, won't carry the Cincinnati Bengals to a Super Bowl. The team can save $28.4 million by parting ways with those two post-prime key players right now, and the timing would be perfect as rookie head coach Zac Taylor takes over.
Taylor has endorsed Dalton, but that's the politically correct thing to do. The reality is he and his team would be better off cutting bait and drafting/grooming a higher-upside quarterback who best suits what Taylor wants to do. It's not as though this team is on the brink of contending. The Bengals had the league's lowest-ranked defense last year; even with a healthy Dalton and Green, they're clearly the worst team in the AFC North.
How they can start rebuilding
1. Cut and/or trade Dalton and Green: They'd suddenly have more salary-cap space than every team in football except the Indianapolis Colts and New York Jets.
2. Use those savings to support the quarterback of the future: Upgrade that horrendous offensive line with two new guards and a new right tackle in free agency, bring in a good safety-valve receiver on whom Dalton's replacement can depend, and spruce up the defensive front seven.
3. Draft a quarterback in Round 1: The Bengals should then join the Dolphins and New York Giants (and possibly the Jacksonville Jaguars, Denver Broncos and Washington Redskins) in sweepstakes for Dwayne Haskins, Drew Lock, Kyler Murray and Daniel Jones. We won't recommend one over the other at pick No. 11 because they're all playing craps.
What'll need to wait
Just like Miami, Cincinnati will have to wait for its young, still-unknown quarterback to develop while potentially encountering growing pains with a first-year head coach. That defense can't be fixed overnight, either, and Cordy Glenn's $9.3 million cap hit should probably remain on the books for said quarterback's sake—even if the veteran left tackle is overpaid and unlikely to be part of the next era of Bengals football.
The same thing applies to Geno Atkins, who is 30 but is too much of a force and would be too costly to release with a $10.4 million dead-cap number.
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2820958-nfl-teams-that-should-completely-rebuild-this-offseason?utm_source=cnn.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial#slide2
Thoughts?
2 OF 6
Joe Robbins/Getty Images
Why they need to rebuild
Veteran quarterback Andy Dalton has regressed on paper and empirically the last couple of seasons, and it's become apparent that both Dalton, 31, and top wide receiver A.J. Green, 30, won't carry the Cincinnati Bengals to a Super Bowl. The team can save $28.4 million by parting ways with those two post-prime key players right now, and the timing would be perfect as rookie head coach Zac Taylor takes over.
Taylor has endorsed Dalton, but that's the politically correct thing to do. The reality is he and his team would be better off cutting bait and drafting/grooming a higher-upside quarterback who best suits what Taylor wants to do. It's not as though this team is on the brink of contending. The Bengals had the league's lowest-ranked defense last year; even with a healthy Dalton and Green, they're clearly the worst team in the AFC North.
How they can start rebuilding
1. Cut and/or trade Dalton and Green: They'd suddenly have more salary-cap space than every team in football except the Indianapolis Colts and New York Jets.
2. Use those savings to support the quarterback of the future: Upgrade that horrendous offensive line with two new guards and a new right tackle in free agency, bring in a good safety-valve receiver on whom Dalton's replacement can depend, and spruce up the defensive front seven.
3. Draft a quarterback in Round 1: The Bengals should then join the Dolphins and New York Giants (and possibly the Jacksonville Jaguars, Denver Broncos and Washington Redskins) in sweepstakes for Dwayne Haskins, Drew Lock, Kyler Murray and Daniel Jones. We won't recommend one over the other at pick No. 11 because they're all playing craps.
What'll need to wait
Just like Miami, Cincinnati will have to wait for its young, still-unknown quarterback to develop while potentially encountering growing pains with a first-year head coach. That defense can't be fixed overnight, either, and Cordy Glenn's $9.3 million cap hit should probably remain on the books for said quarterback's sake—even if the veteran left tackle is overpaid and unlikely to be part of the next era of Bengals football.
The same thing applies to Geno Atkins, who is 30 but is too much of a force and would be too costly to release with a $10.4 million dead-cap number.
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2820958-nfl-teams-that-should-completely-rebuild-this-offseason?utm_source=cnn.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial#slide2
Thoughts?
![[Image: 4CV0TeR.png]](https://i.imgur.com/4CV0TeR.png)
