Bengals Offensive Line Preview: Free Agent Haul Changes Landscape for Offense

Cincinnati is hoping to be much better in the trenches this season.

Author:
Mike Santagata
Updated:
Aug 11, 2022 7:58 AM EDT
Original:
Aug 11, 2022

In this story:

If the Bengals are going to take the next step on offense, it starts in the trenches with their offensive line. They overhauled this unit in free agency after their lackluster performance in the postseason, which included giving up nine sacks to the Titans and six second half sacks to the Rams in Super Bowl LVI.

It wasn't all bad, but these issues become magnified when teams get better in the playoffs. By patching up the offensive line in free agency, the Bengals are hoping that they can take the next step from Super Bowl contender to Super Bowl champion.

Let's take a look at all five spots on the offensive line.

Left Tackle

Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson (91) works as Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle Jonah Williams (73) blocks during Cincinnati Bengals training camp practice, Monday, Aug. 1, 2022, at the practice fields next to Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati. Cincinnati Bengals Training Camp Aug 1 0030 — © Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

Jonah Williams grew as a player last season. He missed his entire rookie year after being the 11th overall pick in 2019. The 2020 campaign was essentially his rookie year. Last offseason he put on some extra weight and worked on his footwork and hands.

It could be the added muscle or just luck, but he remained healthy not only for the entire regular season, but he also played in all four pos season games as well. To go with the added durability, Williams flat out played better than in 2020. He was better in pass protection, had more push in the run game, and got better as the season went on. His growth shows no matter which source you prefer to use. Pro Football Focus graded him at a 77.1 for 2021 and Brandon Thorn, one of the best OL analysts, ranked him as the 11th best left tackle in the entire National Football League.

The best part is that he is still growing as a player. He could feasibly take the leap from a good left tackle to a great one this season. He’s only 24 years old and this is the first offseason he has had where he is not coming off of an injury. This is a big year for Williams.

What Makes Him Special

He’s a technician, but that feels like cop out answer when discussing Williams' game. It’s his balance and hands that make him a unique player. He remains balanced throughout his pass set at all times. His weight is perfectly on the midline as he kicks out, which helps him not to quickly change direction and mirror if needed, while also allowing him to not be taken advantage of early in the rep. Even if he oversets just a little bit, his balance will allow for him to quickly recover against an inside move.

His hands are the other area I want to highlight. Especially in pass protection, he does a fantastic job to work independent hands with varying strikes. He likes the circle punch quite a bit which is typically a more patient technique that ends with using the outside arm to come out and around before latching onto the defender. He does a great job with his hand placement and it’s clear that he works on it quite a bit.

Areas For Improvement

To jump to the next level, Williams will need to be more consistent. He’s a very smart player and sometimes it seems to get the better of him. Rather than being able to play with just unconscious intuition, he appears to overthink things from time to time. There is a fine line to walk between not thinking enough and thinking too much on the field. I think Williams is slightly over the line at the moment, but with more experience and time in the same system, he should be able to play more instinctively.

Left Guard

Cincinnati Bengals guard Jackson Carman (79) and Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle Jonah Williams (73) block during organized team activities practice, Tuesday, June 14, 2022, at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati. Cincinnati Bengals Football Practice June 14 0026 — © Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Bengals selected Jackson Carman in the second round of the 2021 draft. He was a young prospect from Clemson where he played left tackle. They picked him to be a guard for the Bengals and he was a disappointment in year one.

Everything started poorly for Carman when he couldn't beat out Xavier Sua-Filo for the starting job in training camp. When Sua-Filo got hurt in Week 2 against the Bears, it was Carman who played against Pittsburgh in Week 3. He lost the starting job to Hakeem Adeniji a few weeks later and never took it back.

The issue here is that none of these guys were real competition for Carman. The Bengals set the right guard job up so that their second round pick would be able to start and instead he lost his job to everyone else.

This season he’s in a camp battle with fourth-round rookie Cordell Volson for the starting left guard spot. If he loses that job, then his career is in serious jeopardy. Even if he wins the job, he has to play at an NFL level. This team is too talented to put up with another dreadful season from Carman.

What Makes Him Special

Carman is large, athletic, and a former five star recruit, but his best trait is the power that he packs in his punch. When he is able to land his punch, he will stop players in their tracks or move them over a full gap and a half.

Overall he’s very raw, but you can see why the Bengals took him so high when he connects with his hands. If he improves into a starting level or better player, then there will be these flashes of brilliance when it comes to his hands.

Areas For Improvement

The reason we didn't see Carman's power was because of his hand placement. He routinely would end up with his hands outside of the defender's shoulder pads. This sapped away his strength because he’s not really connecting with the defender. His best trait was rendered useless because he could not hit the defender with his hands.

Having wide hands is a 3-part issue. The first is that it saps away your power as an offensive lineman. The second issue is that it gives up your chest. An offensive lineman’s chest is similar to a boxer’s head. You want to protect that during every rep because if the defender can get in your chest, then they will control the rep. The third issue is that wide hands traditionally lead to a lot of holding penalties. The official cannot see what you are doing if you keep your hands on the inside, but if you are grabbing outside of the shoulder pad, it’s very easy to see.

The good part about Carman’s biggest issue is that it’s fixable. If he works at his strike placement and timing more, then he can hopefully turn this around and show off the massive power that he has. The concern is that this is only one of the issues that plagued Carman's rookie season.

Center

The Bengals made a concerted effort to try to improve the offensive line in free agency. One of the three spots they attempted to upgrade was at the center position with Ted Karras.

Karras is a Super Bowl Champion center who was part of a great offensive line this past season. He's a former sixth round pick that had to work his way up in the Patriots system to finally start a majority of his fourth season. He then went to Miami in 2020 where the offensive line was a disaster before returning to New England and playing well once again. The question becomes whether he was being propped up by the talent in New England or if the center we saw in Miami is who he really is as a player.

What Makes Him Special

Karras is a cerebral player at the pivot spot. He seems to always know what the defense is going to do and stays a step ahead of them. He needs to because he was not blessed with tremendous athleticism or size. Instead, he wins by being smarter than the opposition. He is always prepared for stunts and twists before they happen, he takes great angles to the second level, and he rarely misses his blitz pickups.

Areas For Improvement

Karras really needs to show that he can succeed outside of New England. Miami was a tough situation with how bad the offensive line was, but plenty of players from New England who leave and never reach the same level of play. If he can show that he can play at the same level this season then the Bengals have found a solid center. This is certainly a better situation for him than Miami was in 2020.

Right Guard

Alex Cappa agreed to terms with the Bengals before any of the other free agents in this entire class.

Cappa is a grinder at right guard who once tried to play through a broken leg. He also was able to play through a broken arm before. Cappa played his collegiate football for the Humboldt State Lumberjacks and if that is the first time you’re hearing of that college, that makes two of us. While playing for the Lumberjacks, he was named the GNAC offensive lineman of the year for four years in a row. Humboldt State University doesn't even have a football team anymore.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers took Cappa in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft. Like most small school players, it took some adjustment to the NFL. He has been steadily getting better every season. This past year he evolved from a starting caliber right guard into one of the 10 best right guards in the NFL. Who knows if this is his peak or if he still has another gear he can hit as a player.

What Makes Him Special

Cappa is a strong player, but to go with that strength, he is extremely consistent. He always keeps a wide base to help him quickly anchor, but not so wide that he cannot move quickly. His base is his calling card to me.

By keeping a proper base, he will play with good leverage, can strike upwards, and is less likely to get run over. He can quickly drop his anchor and take on a bullrush from a 3 technique which is the main issue that guards have to worry about in pass protection. He possesses nice short area quickness as well so he is hard to beat in general.

It’s not just on his angle sets that he keeps this wide base, but also even on jump sets. This allows him to really showcase the power and grip strength he has as well. Once Cappa gets his hands on the opposing defense, he is able to shut them down.

Areas For Improvement

Tampa Bay seemed to really struggle with stunts this past year and Cappa is no exception. He got his center blindsided a few teams allowing for the defender to get a hit on the quarterback on some of these stunts. He was a little bit better about picking up the penetrator than he was dealing with the looper, but overall it left something to be desired.

To give him somewhat of an excuse, the Buccaneers played stunts differently than almost everyone I have seen in the NFL. They really liked to man up those stunts rather than trying to pass them off. It’s possible that in a different system, Cappa could deal with these stunts better, but as of now it’s an area that needs improvement.

Right Tackle

Despite the fairly modest price tag, La’el Collins was the biggest signing the Bengals made in free agency. Ranked by Brandon Thorn as a top 5 right tackle in the NFL, Collins should be a huge improvement at this spot compared to last season.

He’s a monster when he's healthy. Collins is strong, athletic, and plays with a demeanor that you cannot teach. He called himself Joe Burrow’s body guard and he means it. He should do an exceptional job protecting the young quarterback, but he might bring even more joy to Joe Mixon in the running game. He hasn't always been healthy and had a suspension issue before, but if the Bengals can get him for a majority of this season, they have struck gold.

What Makes Him Special

Collins is one of the most powerful offensive linemen in the entire NFL. He can pop a defender and send them flying with just one punch. He can lift up and stonewall a bullrush immediately. His double teams with future Hall of Famer Zack Martin have been some of the most devastating blocks in football. Collins is going to bring some much needed power to the Bengals' offensive line.

Cappa is also very powerful in his own right. This could be a fun duo to watch, assuming they're able to get on the same page during the season. It should be fireworks when they work together. You just hope that they can get a good feel for each other early in the season rather than later. Both of them have missed some time in camp and practice, so it may time to build chemistry.

Areas For Improvement

Collins isn't consistent enough in hitting his landmarks. Despite all of the great things that he does for an offense, he struggles with consistency. Most of the time when he misses, he'll overset the defender and that gives up a free track to the inside if they can react and read it in time.

With Frank Pollack as his offensive line coach once again, Collins could rectify this issue. It’s not something that is impossible to correct, but it is something that was a concern on his film in 2021. He’s still a great right tackle, but if he wants to take the step from a top 5 to a top 3 right tackle, these are the things he has to shore up.

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