Before Monday’s loss to the Cleveland Browns, the Cincinnati Bengals didn’t figure to be players at the NFL trade deadline.
With the injury to No. 1 corner Chidobe Awuzie…that needs to change.
Buy Bengals TicketsA Super Bowl-contending team in today’s NFL can’t just up and lose its top corner and still hope to reach those heights again. And that’s especially the case with the Bengals as Awuzie was a majorly unheralded piece of last year’s run.
Granted, the full severity of Awuize’s injury might not be known by the actual 4 p.m. ET deadline. But with him clutching at his leg, going down, limping off, needing a cart to leave the medical tent and the team declaring him out moments later, the outlook is bleak.
Keep in mind Eli Apple missed Monday’s game with a nagging injury issue. Tre Flowers, after giving up a touchdown, left with an injury. Second-rounder Cam Taylor-Britt got exposed in coverage at least once and first-rounder Dax Hill, tasked with playing unexpectedly on the boundary, also gave up one of 50-plus.
That was quick proof against Jacoby Brissett that the current depth just isn’t going to cut it. Neither will the starters if it’s Apple and Taylor-Britt the rest of the way.
This isn’t like wideout where they can call up a Trenton Irwin and be somewhat comfortable. The only names on the practice squad are unproven — Marvell Tell III and Allan George.
Besides the obvious, how teams can attack the Bengals and the schemes actually available to the defense shifts dramatically without a player of Awuzie’s caliber. No trade acquisition is going to replace him perfectly, but something will go a longer way than nothing.
Make no mistake — the trade market for corners isn’t overly appealing. Sidney Jones of the Seahawks makes sense. Maybe the Buccaneers want to let go of Sean Murphy-Bunting.
But this is more about getting a veteran to soak up snaps and keep things level than anything else. Developmental reps for Taylor-Britt and Dax Hill sound great but will harm the team’s contention chances. The team drafted those guys as long-term solutions, not immediate help.
This isn’t an ideal place for the Bengals to sit, but the injury luck the team enjoyed last year is over. That requires an adjustment, and it has to come in the form of player acquisition.
