The following feature is a free preview of our IDP content. If you like it, click here to sign up for access to our Footballguys Subscription, and you'll get all of our content. We're so confident you'll love it that we offer an industry-leading 30-day Money-Back Guarantee, ensuring zero risk.
RELATED: See More Like This here.
An Overview of the Cincinnati Bengals Defense
The Bengals spent a boatload of money to keep their prolific offense together. They will need it to score 40 points every week if the defense doesn't improve. It's not that the 2024 Bengals were horrible on defense; they simply were not good. At least they were consistently bad, finishing 19th against both pass and run. This unit allowed too many big plays in the passing game. The 48 passes of 20+ yards were not all that bad, but 10 of them went for 40+. Only three teams allowed more. Cincinnati's 36 sacks were near the bottom of the league, and they were 25th in scoring. One thing the unit excelled at was taking the ball away. Just six teams produced more than their 25 turnovers.
At the end of last season, defensive coordinator Lou Anaroumo became the scapegoat for a front office that dropped the ball. This is the same guy who coached the previous defenses, which were very good. So what happened? Well, it's hard to make ice cream out of horse poop. If they wanted him to succeed, they should have made some personnel investment to help him. Anaroumo was unemployed for about 8 days. Now we get to see what Al Golden can do with virtually the same lineup. His challenge might be even greater if Trey Hendrickson isn't on the field.
The Bengals used some draft capital on the defense. First-round edge defender Shemar Stewart finally signed at the start of training camp. They landed Demetrius Knight Jr. in round two, to replace Germain Pratt, who was released, and fourth-round linebacker Barrett Carter looks like the replacement for utility man Akeem Davis-Gaither as the team's third linebacker. The only important defensive addition in free agency is tackle T.J. Slaton Jr.
The organization is putting a lot of faith in Golden's ability to make better use of the tools on hand. The jury is still out on how successful he will be. What we do know is that Golden's scheme is an aggressive 4-3 that features a lot of nickel looks, will stunt and blitz to pressure the passer, and gives players the freedom to make splash plays. That should bode well for IDP value.
Cincinnati Bengals Defensive Linemen
Trey Hendrickson led the league with 17.5 sacks in 2024. The rest of Cincinnati's defensive line combined for 16.5. Thus, the most important factor here will be getting the veteran on board. As I write this, we are a few days into training camp, and Hendrickson is ending his holdout but has yet to practice.
Assuming the deal gets done, Hendrickson is by far the best fantasy target of this group. His appeal is focused more on the big-play department. Hendrickson is not as stout or productive against the run, though there has been improvement in that part of his game over the years.
When it comes to rushing the passer, Hendrickson has an extra gear that makes him one of the game's best. Over four years with Cincinnati, he has 57 sacks and 11 forced fumbles. Hendrickson recorded what was then his career best of 28-15-17.5 in 2023, only to up the mark to 33-13-17.5 in 2024. In IDP leagues with balanced or tackle-heavy scoring, modest tackle totals keep his value down a little. In leagues with more emphasis on sacks, Hendrickson is a superstar.
In the Footballguys default IDP scoring, Hendrickson ranked 14th in 2023, moving up to number 5 in 2024. We can't count on the guy leading the league in sacks every year, so it's a good thing that his tackle numbers have increased each season since 2019. Fifty combined stops and fifteen sacks would not guarantee another top five, but it would make him a strong EDGE1 for us, which is what I expect.
Sam Hubbard played through injury for most of last season, retiring at the end of the year. The Bengals desperately need someone to step up at that position. There are three players with the potential to do so. Joseph Ossai is the top candidate, at least for the short term.
Ossai was a third-round selection by the team in 2021. He played sparingly over his first two years, totaling 27 tackles and 4 sacks. His role expanded from the start in 2024. Even before Hubbard's injury, Ossai was seeing 30+ snaps per game as the third man. He was not officially named the starter until Hubbard was shut down in week fifteen, but Ossai started splitting time equally with Hubbard in week nine.
Ossai finished 2024 at 26-20-5 with a pair of forced fumbles on 576 plays. The interesting thing is how productive he was down the stretch. Over the final seven games, he went 17-7-5 with 2 forced fumbles, including at least half a sack in six of those games. He Ossai lacks the raw talent of his competitors, but experience, work ethic, and production should make it his job to lose.
The team used a first-round pick on Myles Murphy in 2023. Two years into his career, he has been a bust. Murphy went 10-10-3 on 305 snaps as a rookie, showing promise in the limited role. He totaled 11-9-0 on 323 plays in year two. Heading into his third year, the question is, will Murphy break out, or did the team pick Shemar Stewart because they have given up on Murphy?
The Stewart selection at 17 overall is an interesting one. The young man has the physical tools to be special. At six feet five and 267 pounds, he is a physical specimen with a huge wingspan and all the traits NFL teams long for in an edge defender. Watching his college film brought back memories of Jason Taylor II Sr. for me. The wingspan, the way he moves, and uses leverage to get around the corners, is enticing.
There are two concerns with Stewart. He is raw, with plenty of room for technical improvement and more moves/counters. Good coaching can address that, although it may take some time. The red flag is his lack of college production. In three seasons at Texas A&M, he compiled just 65 combined tackles and 4.5 sacks. Stewart was credited with a good number of pressures, but he failed to get home far too often. With a year or two of seasoning to learn and polish his skills, Stewart could be a good one. If the Bengals can't get the Hendrickson deal done, they might not have the luxury of patience.
The Bengals have been searching for the right combination at tackle since they let D.J. Reader get away after the 2023 season. B.J. Hill has been a mainstay since coming over from the Giants in 2021. On the field, Hill is a dependable three-down guy who holds up well against the run. He has a strong bull-rush to collapse the pocket and enough wiggle to contribute as a pass rusher.
On the fantasy side, Hill is a steady contributor. His best production came in 2022 when he was 31-38-3 with 4 turnovers, including his only top-twelve finish. Hill has at least 50 combined stops and 3 sacks in each of his four years in Cincinnati, landing among the top 20 in each of those seasons. His production has been consistent, making Hill a safe and dependable target as a second starter.
After letting Reader go, the team signed Sheldon Rankins for the nose tackle job. That might have worked out had he not missed most of the season with injuries. The loss left the team shuffling to fill the void. Rookie Kris Jenkins Jr. eventually came out with the majority of the playing time. He was adequate on the field and fairly productive on a per-snap basis. Jenkins totaled 31 tackles and 3 sacks on fewer than 500 plays.
While Jenkins will be a good player for the team for a long time and could eventually become a full-time starter as the three-technique, he was not a great fit as the starting nose tackle. The organization addressed that situation with the signing of T.J. Slaton Jr. Slaton is a 340-pound road grader who will anchor the run defense. His presence will be an upgrade in that department. Slaton will not see much action on passing downs, likely giving way to Jenkins in those situations. The combination should work well, but neither player is likely to make a splash in the IDP pool.
Last year's third-round pick, McKinnley Jackson, will be the primary backup to Slaton, with recent free agent signing Taven Bryan filling out the depth chart. Both players will have some opportunity to contribute on a limited basis.
- DE Trey Hendrickson – Solid number one
- DE Joseph Ossai – Sleeper with edge2 potential
- DE Myles Murphy – Watchlist worthy, but no grand expectations
- DE Shemar Stewart – Taxi squad target with long-term potential
- DE Cam Sample – No impact
- DE Cedric Johnson – No Impact
- DT B.J. Hill – Quality DT2
- DT Kris Jenkins Jr. – Injury sleeper
- DT T.J. Slaton Jr. – No impact
- DT Taven Bryan – No impact
- DT McKinnley Jackson – No impact
_(1000_x_500_px)_png)