The Cincinnati Bengals have either re-signed or lost most of their 2023 free-agent class by this point of the offseason.
Those Bengals made a splash by bringing back Germaine Pratt, for example. But they also lost members of their market-bound class such as Jessie Bates, Vonn Bell, Hayden Hurst and even Samaje Perine.
Cincinnati counteracted some of these losses with outside signings such as safety Nick Scott, tight end Irv Smith Jr. and — of course — Orlando Brown Jr. as the big outside splash at left tackle.
Interestingly, a handful of Bengals free agents remain on the market. Let’s take a quick look at those now that draft season is over and we march into the quiet spring.
CB Eli Apple
The Bengals added to the corner room multiple times. But Apple was a great backup-turned-starter two years in a row, so there’s merit to bringing him back again eventually.
S Brandon Wilson
Wilson’s job on returns has been grabbed by others, but don’t sleep on a summer return if the injury bug strikes.
LS Clark Harris
Harris said he didn’t want to retire but could anyway. Either way, Cal Adomitis is the guy.
CB Chris Lammons
Lammons was a claim from the Chiefs before the AFC title game and never seemed like someone the team would actually keep.
LB Clay Johnston
Johnston was a nice deep backup, but there’s a logjam at linebacker right now.
TE Mitchell Wilcox
Wilcox continues to rehab from an injury and could always be brought back over the summer to reinforce a spot that didn’t get addressed much.
