An unconventional off-season strategy we should employ

[BurrowTheGoat]

Thinking about the way our cap situation is going to play out over the next few years presents us with a unique opportunity to trade draft picks for in their prime talent. Since in 2-4 years we will have to pay big deals on Burrow, Chase, Tee and Wilsons 2nd contracts, 2022 draft picks are less valuable. They are less valuable because if they ball out it is very unlikely we will even have the cap space for their 2nd contracts after unloading on the above mentions current young studs.

Our current cap space is wide open however, 200million or so and that's before we cut Waynes bad deal. Give or take 40 million to re-sign Spain, Ogunjobi and BJH and we still have a lot of money to work with. I would be looking for teams with top talent especially along the OL and offering up draft picks in trades. A team like New Orleans for example may be willing to part ways with a premier but 28 year old tackle like Ryan Ramczyk for a 2nd round pick. A team like Philly may let us snag Jason Kelce for a 3rd or 4th since he is older. These players would be invaluable to us over the next 3-4 years while our SB window is open. Just a thought.

[Gdale_Bengal]

I don’t know if I want to be like the Rams and have like no picks for the next 2 years and the roster be like in there mid 30s and can’t dump talent.

If it doesn’t work for the rams, they may be completely screwed.

[*jason*]

(01-08-2022, 09:20 AM)Gdale_Bengal Wrote: I don’t know if I want to be like the Rams and have like no picks for the next 2 years and the roster be like in there mid 30s and can’t dump talent.

If it doesn’t work for the rams, they may be completely screwed.

Not sure how I feel about it either, but the difference between Cincinnati and the Rams is that Burrow is on his rookie deal while Stafford isn't. We also didn't do so hot the last couple of times we drafted in the 20s. There aren't as many Greens and Chases (can't miss guys, not necessarily WRS) in that part of the draft.

[Interceptor]

I would be all in if we can get 2 or 3 good veteran OL men who know what they are doing. We can only go as far as Burrow will take us - and he needs to do that standing up.

[NUGDUKWE]

(01-08-2022, 06:24 AM)BurrowTheGoat Wrote: Thinking about the way our cap situation is going to play out over the next few years presents us with a unique opportunity to trade draft picks for in their prime talent.  Since in 2-4 years we will have to pay big deals on Burrow, Chase, Tee and Wilsons 2nd contracts, 2022 draft picks are less valuable.  They are less valuable because if they ball out it is very unlikely we will even have the cap space for their 2nd contracts after unloading on the above mentions current young studs.  

Our current cap space is wide open however, 200million or so and that's before we cut Waynes bad deal.  Give or take 40 million to re-sign Spain, Ogunjobi and BJH and we still have a lot of money to work with.  I would be looking for teams with top talent especially along the OL and offering up draft picks in trades.  A team like New Orleans for example may be willing to part ways with a premier but 28 year old tackle like Ryan Ramczyk for a 2nd round pick.  A team like Philly may let us snag Jason Kelce for a 3rd or 4th since he is older.  These players would be invaluable to us over the next 3-4 years while our SB window is open.  Just a thought.

Yeah I've thought about this and we may need to get creative this off-season. But depending what happens with Bates and Waynes may add more needs for the team. I also think we may need to try and add a linebacker in the 2nd round if we like a guy there. Also this draft seems to be deep at DT so if we can't sign both Hill and Ogunjobi we might be able to get a DT in the 3rd that is a contributor. This off-season will be interesting and hopefully we can find a way to add key pieces while also keeping the majority of our own as I think we're very close.

[Gdale_Bengal]

(01-08-2022, 09:29 AM)jason Wrote: Not sure how I feel about it either, but the difference between Cincinnati and the Rams is that Burrow is on is rookie deal while Stafford isn't. We also didn't do so hot the last couple of times we drafted in the 20s. There aren't as many Greens and Chases (can't miss guys, not necessarily WRS) in that part of the draft.

You can’t really base that idea off that though since every draft is different. N’Keal Harry has been a big bust for the Patriots and it’s not stopping them from being a contender or in the hunt for the play offs every year. Tgey also drafted some pretty good OL the 20s. Ramcyk etc. tons of talent drafted there, Tobin has to do a good job of finding the right players.

Also they never really used FA like they do now, which helps improve the talent around rookies.

[NUGDUKWE]

(01-08-2022, 09:29 AM)jason Wrote: Not sure how I feel about it either, but the difference between Cincinnati and the Rams is that Burrow is on his rookie deal while Stafford isn't. We also didn't do so hot the last couple of times we drafted in the 20s. There aren't as many Greens and Chases (can't miss guys, not necessarily WRS) in that part of the draft.

I wouldn't mind trading draft picks for players but I would prefer later picks. But this an interesting idea to trade our 1st if the right lineman was available still young but has shown the type of player they are in the league. Things will definitely shift around but now it appears there is like 5 OL that are round 1 grade I'm sure that # is low. But what if they're all gone by the time we pick? 

[fredtoast]

(01-08-2022, 06:24 AM)BurrowTheGoat Wrote: Since in 2-4 years we will have to pay big deals on Burrow, Chase, Tee and Wilsons 2nd contracts, 2022 draft picks are less valuable.  They are less valuable because if they ball out it is very unlikely we will even have the cap space for their 2nd contracts after unloading on the above mentions current young studs.  

I don't follow this logic.

Only way we can afford to pay big contracts to Burrow, Chase, and Tee and others is if we are getting decent production form guys still on their rookie deals.  2022 draft picks will be on their rookie deals '22-'25.  So it seems to me that if we are looking to give out some big contracts in a few years that makes the '22 draft picks MORE valuable.  If we take on a bunch of big veteran contracts next season we won't even have the cap space available to give big contracts to guys like Burrow, Chase, and Tee.

[*pally*]

I don't think that mortgaging the future of this team for a veteran lineman is the way to go. The Rams are going to implode with their aging expensive roster with no way to restock it. Free agency can only take you so far. However, it should be able to fill in the blanks for the Bengals.

[Essex Johnson]

(01-08-2022, 10:01 AM)Interceptor Wrote: I would be all in if we can get 2 or 3 good veteran OL men who know what they are doing. We can only go as far as Burrow will take us - and he needs to do that standing up.

I totally agree we need to improve the iine but u still have to balance it with other needs.

 Over the past decade 7 super bowls have had non HOF caliber QB and this is taking in consideration that the goat Brady has taken 6 of those years as a QB Super Bowl. How about this ring of honor past 10 years, Falco, Kaepernick,  Goff, Foles, Garoppolo. 

Yes your odds go up with a excellent QB but recent history shows Teams can make a run when other pieces are in place also.

[leonardfan40]

2022 draft picks are not less valuable. Should we be willing to move one or two for a clear and immediate upgrade in the right situation to go all in? Sure, but they aren’t less valuable.

We still have to fill out an entire roster and can’t afford to have every non-burrow/chase/Higgins on Vet deals. Plus like Fred said, when we actually have to pay those guys we need a LOT of good players on rookie contracts to fill out the roster.

Even if we hit on them and can’t afford to re-sign them we can get creative and trade them their last year or franchise tag year for more draft picks at that time to replenish the cupboards.

If we stop drafting or stop drafting well this whole thing falls apart and we never get where we want to be. Look at the 2015 team and what bad drafts did to that group.

[Bengalitis]

I know we once had sanu, aj, and jones. We were not able to keep jones & sanu and ended up keeping aj who rarely ended up on the field. Hope we can keep all 3 longer.

[SuperBowlBound!]

(01-08-2022, 10:23 AM)fredtoast Wrote: I don't follow this logic.

Only way we can afford to pay big contracts to Burrow, Chase, and Tee and others is if we are getting decent production form guys still on their rookie deals.  2022 draft picks will be on their rookie deals '22-'25.  So it seems to me that if we are looking to give out some big contracts in a few years that makes the '22 draft picks MORE valuable.  If we take on a bunch of big veteran contracts next season we won't even have the cap space available to give big contracts to guys like Burrow, Chase, and Tee.

I was thinking the same thing.

Don't get me wrong I like the players we have at most positions but you cant sign everyone to lucrative contracts even if they deserve it. I guy like Ogunjobi may want more money than we can actually afford. I love everything about him from is attitude, effort, he is a team player and the quality of person he is but that may be a position we may have to take a chance in drafting a replacement if he cannot be signed for what we need to sign him for.

The Bengals need to target positions like CB, S and DL as areas that we may not resign who we have because we cannot afford everyone.
We may be better to draft those positions to save money.

[bengaloo]

So far ZT and LA's biggest attributes have been rebuilding the roster. They have done it through both the draft and FA. Just keep up whatever they are doing and we will be fine, imo. We have Burrow, so just keep stocking around him.

[M.W.]

(01-08-2022, 11:56 AM)bengaloo Wrote: So far ZT and LA's biggest attributes have been rebuilding the roster. They have done it through both the draft and FA. Just keep up whatever they are doing and we will be fine, imo. We have Burrow, so just keep stocking around him.

I tend to agree with this opinion. 
Most here thought the sky was falling when the Bengals let William Jackson walk.  They used that money for Awuzie and Hilton. They are way better than just William Jackson.  Awuzie my himself is an upgrade of WJ.
Getting Pollack back was huge - who knows what he will make from the youngsters already on the roster but it would be really nice to improve the line fast, before it is too late.  FAST.
For the first time in a long time, I trust the Bengals management team to make sound managerial decisions.

[KillerGoose]

The team is now firmly in their SB window and will likely lose some of these dudes when it comes contract time. Using draft capital to grab players to help win now would be a great idea. Cincinnati isn't far off from being genuine Super Bowl contenders if Burrow continues his play. Sending some picks for offensive line upgrades could very well make this team a front runner.

[Benton]

I'm not sure if I agree.

We'd be trading lower cost contracts (granted on unproven talent) for guys we'd soon have to pay.

We've done a really, really good job of drafting the last couple years. I hope we continue that trend. Draft well, develop those guys and hope they're willing to buy into a winning culture. If they aren't, that's ok, bring in their replacement. We also have a pretty decent record of signing our better players.

Hopefully, we keep this trend and not jump for free agents who either under perform or never perform.

[Isaac Curtis: The Real #85]

My worry is that we overpay for our own guys.

Spain, Bates, Ogunjobi, Apple, CJ, Reiff, and Hill are good players. I'd love to have them all back. But they are not $12 million plus guys.

Bates regressed a ton from last year, I don't want to pay him Mixon money, especially at safety. Especially for multiple years.

Spain played really well. He deserves a multi-year deal wirth more. But we shouldn't pay him like Thuney or Scherff. If we are gonna pay out Scherff money, go get Scherff!

Apple started off horribly, but has been excellent since the bye. But I don't want to splash big money based on 5 weeks of good play.

Ogunjobi has a lot of sacks and has made some huge plays (Jacksonville goal line). But he also disappears for stretches.

A lot of tough decisions coming.

[*Go Cards*]

Good players on rookie deals are what you want to have these days in NFL

Burrow, Chase. Higgins, Logan Wilson, McPhearson, on the cheap are great examples and why we all think the window is wide open for next couple of years.

Don't want to trade too many of these but maybe could see using a 4th or 5th if it would help bring right player into Bengals fold.

Yet would probably just keep the draft picks and be aggressive in FA for O-line help. Believe that is their only real weakness and could probably be fixed with a solid proven player or two if everybody is retained.

If able to fix O-line adequately in FA it would allow the Bengals the luxury of just grabbing PBA in draft and loading up.

Plus when you don't really have any major needs its makes you very flexible in trading and acquiring more picks or extra future picks just for dropping back a few spots.

Think the Bengals are in the Catbirds seat presently if the core group of players remain.

[BurrowTheGoat]

(01-08-2022, 12:21 PM)KillerGoose Wrote: The team is now firmly in their SB window and will likely lose some of these dudes when it comes contract time. Using draft capital to grab players to help win now would be a great idea. Cincinnati isn't far off from being genuine Super Bowl contenders if Burrow continues his play. Sending some picks for offensive line upgrades could very well make this team a front runner.

This is exactly what I meant with this post.  Some of you seem to think im saying we should stop drafting players and go full Rams, not the case.  However using some draft cap to plug holes right now would be ideal.