Bengals’ distressing injury situation is the perfect opportunity for recent draft pick to assert himself
Trey Hendrickson and Shemar Stewart being injured clears a path for another Bengals defensive end.
Generating a pass rush has been an ongoing problem for the Cincinnati Bengals, and Sunday’s matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers will not be any easier.
Trey Hendrickson is already doubtful to play Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Cincinnati has been without its best defensive end for most of the last month, and with Shemar Stewart also likley out with a knee injury, the position’s depth is also not at its best.
Myles Murphy and Joseph Ossai will still be available, but someone new needs to take on more snaps. The obvious candidate is Cedric Johnson.
Bengals need to play Cedric Johnson more with Shemar Stewart injured
Drafted in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, Johnson has been an afterthought for most of his Bengals career thus far. He only played 83 defensive snaps as a rookie last season, and spent the first eight weeks of this season on the Reserve/Injured list.
Johnson was needed when he finally came off of I.R. in Week 9, and he produced three pressures on just 12 pass-rushing snaps against the Chicago Bears. His pass rush win rate of 9.1% was the second-highest among Cincinnati’s defensive linemen, according to Pro Football Focus.
A limited sample size to be sure, but on a defense that needs any and all kinds of production, it’s worth experimenting if Johnson can keep it up with more snaps.
Defensive coordinator Al Golden has shown he will not blitz to spark a pass rush. The Bengals are last in the NFL in blitz percentage (15.5%) and only three clubs have fewer than their 13 sacks through nine games. Players need to win their one-on-ones in a timely manner for the likes of cornerback DJ Turner II to be rewarded for their coverage in the defensive backfield.
It’s up to the guys up front, and with two of them down this week, Johnson’s time to step up is now. Expect him to fill in behind Murphy and Ossai along with Cam Sample.
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