Stat shows why Cincinnati Bengals could be the class of the AFC in 2022
The Cincinnati Bengals reached the Super Bowl this past season despite having an offensive line that was among the worst in the NFL. Cincinnati's offensive line ranked No. 20 in PFF's final 2021 rankings. That's an improvement from 2020 when the Bengals' offensive line ranked No. 30. But even with the slight improvement, the Cincinnati […]
The Cincinnati Bengals reached the Super Bowl this past season despite having an offensive line that was among the worst in the NFL.
Cincinnati's offensive line ranked No. 20 in PFF's final 2021 rankings. That's an improvement from 2020 when the Bengals' offensive line ranked No. 30.
But even with the slight improvement, the Cincinnati offensive line still made life hard for quarterback Joe Burrow.
The former LSU star was sacked 70 times last season — including 19 times in the playoffs.
The Bengals know they have a potential future Hall of Fame quarterback in Burrow, so they went into the offseason with one key goal — improving the offensive line in a major way.
Cincinnati didn't mess around when the new league year started. They quickly signed guard Alex Cappa and guard/center Ted Karras to multi-year deals (Tom Brady wanted Cappa back with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2022, but Cappa went with Burrow and the Bengals instead).
And then last week, the Bengals made another massive addition to their offensive line, signing offensive tackle La'el Collins to a team-friendly three-year deal.
Collins, who was released by the Dallas Cowboys earlier this month, was graded by PFF as the No. 15 offensive tackle in the NFL last season.
The Bengals' offensive line went from a weakness to a major strength in one offseason.
And that's bad news for the rest of the AFC.
That's because Burrow is the best quarterback in the NFL when it comes to passing from a clean pocket.
If Burrow was that good while playing behind one of the worst offensive lines in the country, how good is he going to be playing behind a strong offensive line that gives him a clean pocket more frequently?
Burrow is only scratching the surface of how good he can be. I mean, he led a non-Super Bowl-caliber team to the Super Bowl this past season. A team that most didn't even think would make the playoffs.
Moving forward, the Bengals are clearly committed to building a juggernaut around Burrow.
That's why I think we could truly be seeing the beginning of a special run by Cincinnati.
Featured image via Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK
