Answering why the Bengals released La'el Collins out of nowhere
The Cincinnati Bengals surprised many Tuesday afternoon when they released offensive tackle La'el Collins, two weeks after placing him on the Reserve/PUP list. Head coach Zac Taylor didn't have much more to add other than what's essentially condolences."It's tough, you know, there's never a great time," Taylor said Wednesday of Collins' release. "You know, he […]
The Cincinnati Bengals surprised many Tuesday afternoon when they released offensive tackle La'el Collins, two weeks after placing him on the Reserve/PUP list.
Head coach Zac Taylor didn't have much more to add other than what's essentially condolences.
"It's tough, you know, there's never a great time," Taylor said Wednesday of Collins' release. "You know, he worked really hard for us and I have a lot of respect for LC and the way he went about his business and obviously gave us some really good snaps last year until the injury. Enjoyed being around LC and he's one of those guys that just loves ball and you enjoy being around him. So never great time, but that was a tough one.
"What I can say is there's never a great time to do it. It sucks when you ever tell a guy like that bye."
The mystery has only gotten more mysterious, at least on the surface.
There isn't a clear and obvious reason as to why Collins is no longer still with the team that signed him to a three-year, $21 million contract 18 months ago. What we know for a fact is that he wasn't healthy enough to play for the start of the season, and that his release clears up around $7 million in cap space this season, and around $14 million in cash over the next two years.
Perhaps that's all that matters.
Letting Collins go creates cap and cash flexibility for the Bengals in planning for next offseason. They're now set up to have about $70 million in cap space to work with when 2024 comes around.
Why do it now instead of waiting until then? The best explanation is having the ability to rollover the remaining cap space they have right now (around $12 million) to go into next year. The cash they save can also be reserved, and further moves can be more easily funded.
That's all great, but the logic in holding onto Collins, at least for this season, would be to have an experienced tackle depth behind starters Orlando Brown Jr. and Jonah Williams towards the end of the year. AllBengals.com reported that Collins is probably a month away from actually playing again, so would he be ready in time for when they would need him?
This decision ultimately means the Bengals are comfortable with the depth they have at tackle, and that keeping Collins as depth for the price he cost was not worth it, especially if his health remained a big question.
Bengals will continue managing cornerback Chidobe Awuzie’s snaps
Awuzie made his long-awaited return from his torn ACL in Week 1.
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