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Postdraft roster outlook


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As of 11pm on day 3 of the draft we have 5 roster spots to go. 

 

QB: It wouldn't be absurd for Browning to take over as the primary backup but they certainly will add to the room. They had Trevor Siemian in for a visit, Brandon Allen is still a free agent and you have wildcards like Teddy Bridgewater and AJ McCarron who just lit up the XFL. 

 

RB: I expected more juice here. I don't mind Brown but he wasn't on my list of potential RB targets and that list had 15 people on it. Ezekial Elliott reportedly wanted to play here and I wouldn't object to that. The list of Free Agent RBs isn't short (Fournette-McKinnon-Hunt-Murray-Drake.) but the list of guys who complement the current room is. They signed Jacob Saylors from ETSU who seems like a fun undersized scatback/return guy and Calvin Tyler from Utah St but both just seem like camp bodies. I like Williams but this is his 5th year and he hasn't made an impact. I like Evans but he essentially got benched this year. A room of Mixon-Brown-Williams-Evans isn't exciting. I don't think it would happen but a Jonah Williams for Michael Carter and Jeremy Ruckert trade sure would be interesting for both teams. 

 

WR: The additions of Jones and Iosivas were a bit of a surprise but with only Chase officially signed (Higgins should be back) for 2024 and beyond it made sense to add bodies and speed here. They also added Shed Jackson as a FA. Bo's nephew who Dane Brugler has having run a 4.27 40. The team has ties to WR Jontre Kirklin who was lighting up the XFL before a chest injury sidelined him. Kirklin played with Burrow and Chase at LSU. His story is unique because he played QB in HS, played CB his first 2 years at LSU and then was buried on the depth chart there. He blew away his pro day though. Would be another nice athlete in the mix. 

 

TE: Another position where an overhaul didn't happen. They went with the last possible potential starter by signing Irv Smith, and then re-signed Drew Sample. Mitchell Wilcox is still available should they decide to go that direction. There are a few options for move tight ends available in Dan Arnold and Hakeem Butler and Sal Canella from the XFL....but no one who stands out as being the balanced tight end they would want. The team did add Christian Trahan from Houston as a UDFA. I am surprised they didn't get a more notable UDFA with how up in the air the position is. The Jets added another TE in the draft and can't really trade Conklin or Uzomah due to contract structure. I'd call about Jeremy Ruckert. 

 

OL: No draft pick but the team probably signed the top UDFA here in Jaxson Kirkland. He started 49 career games but only 9 at LG where he played last year. Seems like a lock for the practice squad. The lack of a tackle addition likely means Jonah starts at RT this year.

 

DE: Murphy makes this a strength. 7 of the 8 DEs on the roster are signed through 2025. 

 

DT: The only addition at DT was Devonnsha Maxwell from UT Chattanooga, but he is another likely practice squad member. He had 55.5 tackles for loss and 37.5 sacks in his 5 year career. For a team that was looking for a rotational 3T he is at least interesting. 

 

LB: Tobin and his staff seem to know how to find UDFAs at WR and LB and he looks to have done it again. Duke's Shaka Heyward  was a team captain with 340 career tackles, a 4.53 40 and 629 special teams snaps. He should be in the mix on the practice squad. The team also added Jaylen Moody who played 65 games for Alabama and 881 special team snaps. They know how they like to fill out the back of the room and do a great job with it. Just re-sign Wilson and backfill with UDFAs. 

 

S: Battle in the 3rd likely solidifies the 5 man group at Safety even if you don't really know how snaps will play out. They also added Larry Brooks from Tulane as a UDFA. He had 9 interceptions over his career. 

 

CB: The team added a future starter in DJ Turner and some athletic depth in DJ Ivey. I think he faces an uphill climb to make the roster. Would have liked for them to add at a different position. 

 

QB Burrow 25 Browning 25         2
RB Mixon 25 Brown 27 Williams 24 Evans 25 Tyler Saylors 6
WR Chase 26 Irwin 24 Iosivas 27 Jackson     4
WR Higgins 24 Morgan 24 Lassiter 25       3
WR Boyd 24 Jones 27 Taylor 24       3
TE Smith 24 Sample 24 Asiasi 24 Hudson 25 Bowers 25 Trahan 6
LT Brown 27 Carman 25 Smith 25 Cochran 25     4
LG Volson 26 Kirkland Gilliam 25       3
C Karras 25 Hill 25 Brown 24       3
RG Cappa 26 Scharping 24         2
RT Williams 24 Collins 25 Ford 24 Adeniji 24     4
               
K McPherson 25           1
P Robbins 27 Chrisman 24         2
LS Adomitis 24           1
               
LE Hubbard 26 Murphy 27 Sample 25 Basham 24     4
LT Reader 24 Tupou 24 Tufele 25 Davis 25     4
RT Hill 25 Carter 26 Maxwell       3
RE Hendrickson 25 Ossai 25 Gunter 26 Johnson 25     4
WLB Wilson 24 Bachie 24         2
MLB Pratt 26 Heyward Moody       3
SLB Davis-Gaither 24 Bailey 24 Jones 25 Carney 25     4
S Scott 26 Battle 27 Thomas 24 Wilson 24     4
S Hill 27 Anderson 27 Corker 25 Brooks     4
CB Awuzie 24 Turner 27 Tell 25       3
CB Taylor-Britt 26 Jones 24 George 24       3
CB Hilton 25 Davis 25 Ivey 27       3
              85
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1 hour ago, MichaelWeston said:

The lack of a tackle addition likely means Jonah starts at RT this year.

 

 

:Why-min:

 

I can't shake the suspicion that it's because they owe him a lot of money and not because anyone thinks he'd make a very good RT.  And I hate that.

 

I can get behind not reaching for another mediocre OT in the draft but WTF.  Why are the team so often the last ones to admit a guy can't play? 

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17 minutes ago, WRAPradio said:

Not sure if Rakim Jarrett was signed, but I'd love to bring him in a WR and let him competed for that 5th or 6th (maybe even 7th) spot.

He signed with the Bucs for like 225k guaranteed

 

We gave Shaka a 30k bonus for signing. That’s a good sign for him. 

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- Bring back Brandon Allen for one more run 

- Trade for a TE or use waiver wire

- Trade KC for CEH if possible

- If not, sign Zeke to a team friendly 1 year deal

- Tell Mixon to take a pay cut or cut him

- Force Jonah to play out next season at RT

- Resign CB Tre Flowers to cover big TEs, let Apple walk 

- Extend Higgins first (5 year, 100 million - 60 guaranteed)

- Extend Logan Wilson (4 year, 52 million, 32 guaranteed)

... Then once Burrow sees the fruits of him taking a friendlier deal, 

- Extend Burrow (8 year, 400 million - 240 guaranteed)

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8 out of 24 starters will be FAs next offseason. It is unrealistic to think we can keep all 8 of them, so it was important to get some potential replacements in the pipeline. Here's the 8 and some quick thoughts on what may happen at those spots moving forward:

 

1. D.J. Reader - No DTs drafted and nobody in the pipeline with his skillset. Hopefully this plays out like Germaine Pratt and he comes back for a couple years.

2. Tee Higgins - Unless Iosivas is a major steal, they don't have anything in the pipeline. Need to get him extended this offseason.

3. Logan Wilson - No LBs drafted adds to the urgency to get Wilson's extension done.

4. Chidobe Awuzie - The first spot on this list where there is now an obvious succession plan potentially in place with DJ Turner drafted. 

5. Tyler Boyd - The other spot where a clear succession plan is probably in place with the addition of Charlie Jones. 

6. Jonah Williams - Who knows what is going on at RT but I guess the assumption has to be Williams starting. Potential succession plans with Jackson Carman and maybe La'el Collins (if he doesn't get cut) but no long-term answer here. 

7. Irv Smith Jr. - The whole TE room is on one year deals again. Do this all again next year. 

8. Joe Mixon* - Not technically a FA after this year but he's not playing at his 2024 number (and maybe not his 2023 number), so he might as well be. Chase Brown feels like a longshot as a succession plan. 

 

By addressing Defensive End and Safety, we added depth at key positions and put in place some 2025 succession plans but also put ourselves in a spot where we are going to head into next offseason without viable in-house options at some key spots if we do not aggressively pay out to keep some of our own (Higgins, Wilson, Reader, etc.). 

 

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15 hours ago, T-Dub said:

 

 

:Why-min:

 

I can't shake the suspicion that it's because they owe him a lot of money and not because anyone thinks he'd make a very good RT.  And I hate that.

 

I can get behind not reaching for another mediocre OT in the draft but WTF.  Why are the team so often the last ones to admit a guy can't play? 

 

There isn't much evidence they even tried to move his contract. I agree he'll be a subpar RT because he's not physically strong enough. But the team might be rationalizing along the lines of he was good in 2021 when healthy so his poor play in 2022 was due to his knee injuries and they seem to be better now. Or it could be simple stubborness ala Palmer. The smarter thing would have been to shop him around the league. A starting LT is worth at least a midround pick and a sizeable contract. A healthy Jonah at 12.6 mil compares favorably with Dillard at 11 or Taylor at 20. IMO we should have been able to move him provided the trade partner had a chance to examine him before, not after the trade and permission to discuss an extension with him. If we had managed that, we could have used the pick on Dawand Jones and been no worse off even if Jones is a complete bust and 10+ mil ahead on the cap. 

 

10 hours ago, WRAPradio said:

Not sure if Rakim Jarrett was signed, but I'd love to bring him in a WR and let him competed for that 5th or 6th (maybe even 7th) spot.

 

He'd be ok but Jones fills the same role so I doubt Jarrett's agent would send him here.

 

10 hours ago, WRAPradio said:

 

Wow, nice bonus for Jarrett.  

 

It wasn't all signing bonus, it includes a guarantee they'll at least give him a PS job. 

 

9 hours ago, BlackJesus said:

- Bring back Brandon Allen for one more run 

- Trade for a TE or use waiver wire

- Trade KC for CEH if possible

- If not, sign Zeke to a team friendly 1 year deal

- Tell Mixon to take a pay cut or cut him

- Force Jonah to play out next season at RT

- Resign CB Tre Flowers to cover big TEs, let Apple walk 

- Extend Higgins first (5 year, 100 million - 60 guaranteed)

- Extend Logan Wilson (4 year, 52 million, 32 guaranteed)

... Then once Burrow sees the fruits of him taking a friendlier deal, 

- Extend Burrow (8 year, 400 million - 240 guaranteed)

 

Cosign most of this. I'd like a better backup QB than Allen but there isn't a lot out there. Simien would be fine too. 

We should have just drafted a TE

CEH will probably be cut. I wouldn't be surprised if KC offered him instead of the 6th rounder we got on the trade down.

Elliott would be a good replacement (actually an upgrade) for Perine.

Just cut Mixon instead of dragging it out. He's facing a suspension anyway.

We should still try to trade Jonah instead of paying him 12.6 mil. I'm sure Watt and Garrett endorse the idea of Jonah at RT but if the fallback is Collins/Carman, let's roll with that.

I'd offer Apple and Flowers both a little more than they made last year. Jones or Ivey or Tell aren't the answer at CB.

Yes, we should be able to extend Burrow, Higgins, Wilson, and Reader. Team is 82 mil under the cap for 2024 with about 40 players signed. Burrow will get more than 50 mil per year on average. 

8 hours ago, happyrid said:

8 out of 24 starters will be FAs next offseason. It is unrealistic to think we can keep all 8 of them, so it was important to get some potential replacements in the pipeline. Here's the 8 and some quick thoughts on what may happen at those spots moving forward:

 

1. D.J. Reader - No DTs drafted and nobody in the pipeline with his skillset. Hopefully this plays out like Germaine Pratt and he comes back for a couple years.

2. Tee Higgins - Unless Iosivas is a major steal, they don't have anything in the pipeline. Need to get him extended this offseason.

3. Logan Wilson - No LBs drafted adds to the urgency to get Wilson's extension done.

4. Chidobe Awuzie - The first spot on this list where there is now an obvious succession plan potentially in place with DJ Turner drafted. 

5. Tyler Boyd - The other spot where a clear succession plan is probably in place with the addition of Charlie Jones. 

6. Jonah Williams - Who knows what is going on at RT but I guess the assumption has to be Williams starting. Potential succession plans with Jackson Carman and maybe La'el Collins (if he doesn't get cut) but no long-term answer here. 

7. Irv Smith Jr. - The whole TE room is on one year deals again. Do this all again next year. 

8. Joe Mixon* - Not technically a FA after this year but he's not playing at his 2024 number (and maybe not his 2023 number), so he might as well be. Chase Brown feels like a longshot as a succession plan. 

 

By addressing Defensive End and Safety, we added depth at key positions and put in place some 2025 succession plans but also put ourselves in a spot where we are going to head into next offseason without viable in-house options at some key spots if we do not aggressively pay out to keep some of our own (Higgins, Wilson, Reader, etc.). 

 

 

I'm concerned they let Reader walk under their age/"no third contract" policy. He played great last season and should be extended at least a year or two for a salary comparable to what he makes now, about 15 mil.

 

I agree they will let Awuzie and Boyd go which is why keeping Jonah and Mixon around is baffling.

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15 hours ago, T-Dub said:

 

 

:Why-min:

 

I can't shake the suspicion that it's because they owe him a lot of money and not because anyone thinks he'd make a very good RT.  And I hate that.

 

I can get behind not reaching for another mediocre OT in the draft but WTF.  Why are the team so often the last ones to admit a guy can't play? 

 

Taylor said Carman has a chance to start too, so I'm not sure it's about the money owed so much as they didn't get an offer they liked and remembered losing 3 linemen in the end hurt is so expensive or not if the money is there and were not spending it right now the depth is a nice thing to have, we can better spend it next year.

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10 minutes ago, Jamie_B said:

 

Taylor said Carman has a chance to start too, so I'm not sure it's about the money owed so much as they didn't get an offer they liked and remembered losing 3 linemen in the end hurt is so expensive or not if the money is there and were not spending it right now the depth is a nice thing to have, we can better spend it next year.

 

This all assumes Jonah is going to be motivated to suit up and play worth a shit. You'd think $12.5 million would be plenty of incentive but there's not many more entitled than pro athletes. It's like I said, Happy Thoughts on the depth chart. I don't understand why they would bank on any of the potential RTs but it's not exactly surprising. 

 

The stubborn refusal to admit they made a bad draft pick or a guy isn't living up to expectations has hurt this team way too many times. They let shit drag out far past the point of reason, I don't get it.

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Help me out here, JW has requested a trade but not demanded a trade, correct? 

I'm having a hard time finding ANY of his comments of this (which is not  bad thing).

 

If he requested a trade no big deal, and in a way lets other teams know he may be trade bait, being good for the team.

To actually demand a trade usually means the player doesn't show for any team activities, even those beyond voluntary.

I've not seen any indication he'll do that. Especially at his salary.

 

Why are some assuming he won't stay with the team and play hard enough to compete at RT and insead be an issue going forward?

 

I mean if the front office considers him a competitor for a position, why don't fans agree?

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7 minutes ago, Jupiter Fan said:

Help me out here, JW has requested a trade but not demanded a trade, correct? 

I'm having a hard time finding ANY of his comments of this (which is not  bad thing).

 

If he requested a trade no big deal, and in a way lets other teams know he may be trade bait, being good for the team.

To actually demand a trade usually means the player doesn't show for any team activities, even those beyond voluntary.

I've not seen any indication he'll do that. Especially at his salary.

 

Why are some assuming he won't stay with the team and play hard enough to compete at RT and insead be an issue going forward?

 

I mean if the front office considers him a competitor for a position, why don't fans agree?

 

To put that a different way; why would you want someone that asked to be traded in your starting lineup? Further, a guy you just demoted?

 

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2 hours ago, spicoli said:

Is he really being demoted though? He’s being asked to move to RT while still being paid LT money. I really don’t understand what he’s so upset about to be honest. 

 

Maybe because he knows he's going to get absolutely buried? 

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2 hours ago, spicoli said:

Is he really being demoted though? He’s being asked to move to RT while still being paid LT money. I really don’t understand what he’s so upset about to be honest. 

 

I get it from his perspective but he needs to be honest with himself about his subpar play 

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1 hour ago, Jamie_B said:

 

I get it from his perspective but he needs to be honest with himself about his subpar play 

 

More so Tobin, Pollack and the rest of the coaches. If Jonah wants to think he's a HoFer that's his problem. Tobin etc are the ones making it everyone else's.

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Just looking at the likely cuts from the Jets:

    Kenny Yeboah
    Jeremy Ruckert
    Zack Kuntz
 
It's unlikely they cut last year's 3rd rounder in Jeremy Ruckert.  Maybe, they try and sneak Kuntz onto the practice squad and someone grabs him, but they probably keep him over Kenny Yeboah.  So you're looking at Kenny Yeboah as the most likely cut player.  That's assuming there is no way that they cut Tyler Conklin or C.J. Uzomah.
 
I don't think the Broncos are going to be cutting anyone that would actually be better than if the Bengals brought Wilcox back.  So it looks to me like if they decide to improve the TE position, it's going be resigning Wilcox or finding a low-end trade candidate.  You're just not going to see a decent, young tightend get cut that they win the waivers claim on.
 
My current guess though, they only keep three tightends on the roster (Smith, Sample & Asiasi), 1 more on practice squad.  Tightend looks like a problem for next year again - just my opinion.

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Broncos just traded for Trautman from NO for some reason. That' room is weirdly full. Someone is getting cut. 

 

I am not saying any cuts in August "fix" the position. The bengals don't see TE as needing "fixing", clearly, for 2023. Just noting there will be cuts in August that will potentially fill out that room with a 4th guy if they so choose to partake.   I am assuming they are bringing Wilcox back.  Smith/Sample/Wilcos/Asiasi - but I think a vet cut from somewhere else can be had to further add to that room and push someone if they so choose. 

 

And, yes, for 2024 they are back to FA or the draft. But that doesn't seem to bother them - and if Smith has as good a year as Hurst just did and gets paid somewhere like Hurst just did, the line to come here in FA at TE will only grow...

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6 minutes ago, BBR said:

Just looking at the likely cuts from the Jets:

    Kenny Yeboah
    Jeremy Ruckert
    Zack Kuntz
 
It's unlikely they cut last year's 3rd rounder in Jeremy Ruckert.  Maybe, they try and sneak Kuntz onto the practice squad and someone grabs him, but they probably keep him over Kenny Yeboah.  So you're looking at Kenny Yeboah as the most likely cut player.  That's assuming there is no way that they cut Tyler Conklin or C.J. Uzomah.
 
I don't think the Broncos are going to be cutting anyone that would actually be better than if the Bengals brought Wilcox back.  So it looks to me like if they decide to improve the TE position, it's going be resigning Wilcox or finding a low-end trade candidate.  You're just not going to see a decent, young tightend get cut that they win the waivers claim on.
 
My current guess though, they only keep three tightends on the roster (Smith, Sample & Asiasi), 1 more on practice squad.  Tightend looks like a problem for next year again - just my opinion.

 

 

I wouldn't bet against them cutting CJ, he was kind of underwhelming last year, now granted they had trash at the QB spot so they may hold on to him, but year I can't imagine they carry that many tight ends.

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You don't pay depth players 12.6 mil. The shame of it is that Jonah has a fully guaranteed contract so even if they just cut him, they still owe him 12.6 mil. If it wasn't guaranteed, they would just release him. Because of the contract the only way out is to trade him or keep him. They just had a great chance to trade him ahead of the draft. But now, teams feel optimistic about their late round guys and have their beer goggles on. Maybe they can swing a trade during camp if another team's LT goes down but most teams can't take on Jonah's contract at this point. So the Bengals would have to eat some of his salary. That's probably the real obstacle at team HQ. They just don't want to do it even if it benefits the team. 

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