Bengals: What minicamp says about a crowded secondary
While they rarely let receivers through their defenses on game days, the Cincinnati Bengals' secondary has resembled a revolving door in every offseason since Lou Anarumo became Zac Taylor's defensive coordinator in 2019. The first major facelift came when in 2020 when Trae Waynes and Vonn Bell were signed in the team's free agency awakening. […]
While they rarely let receivers through their defenses on game days, the Cincinnati Bengals' secondary has resembled a revolving door in every offseason since Lou Anarumo became Zac Taylor's defensive coordinator in 2019.
The first major facelift came when in 2020 when Trae Waynes and Vonn Bell were signed in the team's free agency awakening. Bell became a instant culture-changer while Waynes' injury problems paved the way for constant chaos at cornerback. Pretty soon, Chidobe Awuzie, Mike Hilton, and Eli Apple entered the picture in 2021, and Dax Hill, Cam Taylor-Britt followed suit in 2022.
2023 brought even more turnover with more rookies and vets alike, and mandatory minicamp showed how wide open the playing field really is.
Starting with Awuzie, he looks really good not even eight months into his recovery from a torn ACL. He's still limited to individual rehab drills, but the requisite movement skills and explosion looks to be as close to 100% as one can be without being fully cleared.
Awuzie's absence in team drills has opened the door for practically everyone to contribute. Going back to voluntary OTAs, Sidney Jones IV, Allan George, DJ Turner II, and DJ Ivey have all taken first-team reps at cornerback on the other side of the formation from Taylor-Britt, who's coming into his own in year two.
This development has no bearing on what the starting lineup will look like. Awuzie is the best cornerback the Bengals have had in some time, maybe even since Leon Hall when the former first-round pick was in his prime.
At the very least, it will make finding out the pecking order on the depth chart intriguing when training camp rolls around. Will rookies in Turner and Ivey be ahead of George and Jones, or will there continue to be a mixed platoon?
The shoulder injury Nick Scott is still working back from wasn't as severe as Awuzie's torn ACL, but it has still made an impact on the Bengals' reps at safety. Scott, who signed a three-year deal with Cincinnati in March, has been on and off the field taking reps next to both Hill and Jordan Battle.
Position alignments have been all over the place as well. Hill has taken snaps close to LoS, while Battle and Scott continue to patrol deep. This reinforces the idea that labeling any of them free or strong safeties this year appears fruitless. They make up the most versatile safety room the Bengals have had in recent memory.
The starters are set at cornerback. Awuzie will rock with Taylor-Britt on the boundary with Hilton manning the slot for the third-straight year. It's truly unknown how much of a rotation will be used, if at all, behind them at safety, Hill projects as a clear starter, and Scott's veteran presence will be needed beside him, but Battle has yet to give any reason why he shouldn't be playing significant snaps as well.
"He's done a great job. I think it makes sense to him, you know, some guys walk in the door, and football just makes sense," Zac Taylor said of his most recent third-round pick. "I think Jordan really understands what we're asking him to do."
A rotation at cornerback isn't as practical. While Turner and Ivey have both shown promise, they're only going to be out on the field in emergency situations. The Bengals have been all too familiar with that in recent years.
Ahead of another highly anticipated Bengals season, most of the roster can be figured out with three months remaining until Week 1. How the entire defensive backfield fills out behind a group of five quality starters will remain a mystery until the finishing touches are made to one of the strongest rosters in the NFL.
Featured image via © Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK
