Bengals could benefit by spending more in free agency

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

(03-07-2017, 04:29 PM)Bengalholic Wrote: Katherine Terrell talks about how the Bengals have fared in free agency over the last 3 years:

The Cincinnati Bengals have been one of the least active teams in free agency over the past three years, ranking 30th in the NFL in total signings and 28th in total contract value. Here's a look at how those decisions have panned out on the field:

Total signings: 19* (30th in NFL)
Total contract value: ******$99,895,000 (28th in NFL)******
Three-year W-L: 28-18-2

While the Bengals' philosophy of building through the draft instead of free agency has kept them from signing any epic busts, the team also hasn't gotten significantly better in the past few years. The Bengals were a playoff team for several seasons but regressed in 2016 after letting several of their own free agents go.

The Bengals could definitely stand to spend more in free agency or go after more talented players. They usually target middle-tier players such as 35-year-old linebacker Karlos Dansby, but that didn't add much to their defense in 2016. With a young core group of players in place, the Bengals could be in "win now" mode by going after bigger fish in free agency.


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Now realize that Michael Johnson's $20m is a full fifth of that spending. He was technically an outside FA signing, but basically a guy that just took a year off from being with the team.