Bengals 53 Man Roster Predictions
QB (2):
9. Joe Burrow
16. Joe Flacco
The top two spots here are locked in and have been all offseason. With how Josh Johnson and Sean Clifford played in the preseason, some might argue for a 3rd QB, but I decided to keep the spot open for another position. Assuming he doesn’t land a roster spot somewhere else, I think they’d opt to keep Johnson on the practice squad.
RB (3):
30. Chase Brown
34. Samaje Perine
24. Jamal Haynes
Perine received no competition for his spot behind Brown. The RB3 position featured a battle during camp/preseason. Tahj Brooks entered as the incumbent, but didn’t show much. His size and potential in pass protection might still land him the spot, but I opted for Haynes, who has a more dynamic skill set. Of course, it is very much a possibility that the position goes to a waiver pickup. But for this, Haynes got the 3rd spot, and I kept Brooks on the practice squad.
WR (6):
1. Ja’Marr Chase
5. Tee Higgins
80. Andrei Iosivas
86. Colbie Young
81. Dohnte Meyers
12. Ke’Shawn Williams
The top 4 are all roster locks, regardless of how you might want to order them. Meyers, meanwhile, fully earned his roster spot with how well he has done this offseason. He entered being viewed as someone who, if lucky, might challenge for a practice squad spot. But the former CFLer exceeded all expectations. I kept Williams as the 6th guy, and this might be an instance of personal preference rather than a true prediction. Williams has been battling Charlie Jones, and the coaching staff does still seem to like Jones. Because of the depth at other positions, I decided to keep 6 receivers instead of 7. Mitchell Tinsley was a tough cut. I kept him on the practice squad, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he doesn’t make it through waivers. Rookie UDFA Noah Thomas also showed a lot of potential. I kept him on the practice squad as well.
TE (4):
88. Mike Gesicki
89. Drew Sample
83. Erick All
87. Tanner Hudson
In a perfect world, Erick All stays healthy and becomes the starter. His rounded skill set that allows him to be used as a pass catcher and blocker would be great to have on a regular basis. Gesicki should get a fair bit of work from the slot, Sample in his blocking role, and Hudson as reliable depth. I cheated a little bit and put Jack Endries on IR in order to buy an extra roster spot. I’m not sure what his injury status is at the moment, but it didn’t look great on Friday. With the abundance of depth at TE, a redshirt year for the rookie wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing. For his blocking ability, I kept Cam Grandy on the practice squad. If the staff wasn’t so high on Sample, I could have seen Grandy challenging him for the spot, as a younger, cheaper option.
OT (3):
71. Amarius Mims
75. Orlando Brown
73. Javon Foster
G (4):
66. Dalton Risner
63. Dylan Fairchild
74. Jalen Rivers
62. Brian Parker
C (3):
64. Ted Karras
69. Jacob Bayer
65. Connor Lew
Don’t pay too much attention to the positional designation for some of these guys. Versatility matters for depth guys. Parker can play C, G, or OT. Rivers has played G and OT, while Bayer has played C and G. The structure of this position group was turned upside down when they released Cody Ford. Now, there is some sense of chaos and it seems like anything can happen. The one thing I feel comfortable about is that Bayer has earned a spot, and his C/G versatility may see him be one of the top interior backups. As for OT, I’m giving Foster the edge, but it wouldn’t surprise to see it go to Rivers. Either way, I have both on the roster. This, however, does not account for potential waiver claims. As for the starting unit, that has been locked in for some time now.
DE (5):
53. Boye Mafe
99. Myles Murphy
94. Shemar Stewart
55. Cashius Howell
52. Cedric Johnson
The depth the Bengals have at DE is tremendous. Mafe was a high profile free agent pickup that will help replace Trey Hendrickson. Murphy seems to finally be coming into his own as a starter. Stewart got hurt in camp, but should be back at some point relatively soon, even if he misses some time to start the season. When back, he could even provide some value on the inside. Howell, meanwhile, has the speed to be a big threat, which will likely be in a rotational role as a rookie. Johnson gets the last spot after a good preseason. Isaiah Foskey also very much could have been included. He was actually the last cut off the roster. It was down to him or TJ Slaton, and I went with the latter. I kept Foskey and Antwaun Powell-Ryland on the practice squad.
DT (6):
97. Dexter Lawrence
92. BJ Hill
93. Jonathan Allen
98. TJ Slaton
90. Kris Jenkins
96. Landon Robinson
The top 3 are all locks for the roster and are expected to play major roles on the defence. Jenkins entered the offseason on the bubble, but earned his place. He still could be a trade candidate, however. Robinson, I think, was always likely for the roster, despite being a 7th round pick. After his preseason, I don’t see how they can leave him off. I kept Slaton as well. He got some work with the starters and was not playing deeper into the preseason. It seems like he is still in their plans. I kept McKinnley Jackson and Howard Cross III on the practice squad.
LB (4):
44. Demetrius Knight
49. Barrett Carter
42. Oren Burks
47. Swayze Bozeman
I went light at LB in order to keep some back-end guys at other positions. Knight, Carter, and Burks are all locks. I think Bozeman earned his spot in the preseason. He was definitely not the front runner, but showed enough, in my opinion. I kept Shaka Heyward on the practice squad, which wasn’t a tough decision. He could still be on the roster. I gave another spot to Liam Anderson, who quietly had a good preseason. But the result was having to let go of Joe Giles-Harris. But with his special teams ability, seeing him make the team would not surprise me.
CB (6):
0. DJ Turner
23. Daxton Hill
35. Jalen Davis
20. Tacario Davis
38. DJ Ivey
26. Ja’Sir Taylor
The top 4 at CB are all roster locks, while Ivey seems to have done enough in camp to earn his spot. Turner and Hill will start on the outside, with Jalen Davis in the slot. Tacario Davis and DJ Ivey will fight for first off the bench. The CB6 job is up for grabs. I gave it to Taylor, but Bralyn Lux could get it. I kept Lux on the practice squad.
S (4):
6. Bryan Cook
27. Jordan Battle
29. Kyle Dugger
37. PJ Jules
Cook was a high profile free agent signing to replace the departed Geno Stone, who was abysmal last season. Dugger is also expected to be involved as the third guy. Jules, Daijahn Anthony, and Russ Yeast made a play for the 4th spot. I have Jules making it for his special teams ability. I kept Anthony on the practice squad.
Special Teams (3):
2. Evan McPherson (K)
8. Ryan Rehkow (P)
46. William Wagner (LS)
No surprises here. The Bengals did not bring in any special teams competition. And there wasn’t any need to, really. Any other players brought in at these positions would have been for the purpose of giving the starters a break, rather than to actually compete for a job.
IR (1):
84. Jack Endries (TE)
Practice Squad (16):
11. Josh Johnson (QB)
25. Tahj Brooks (RB)
82. Mitchell Tinsley (WR)
17. Noah Thomas (WR)
85. Cam Grandy (TE)
76. Christian Jones (OT)
79. Andrew Coker (OT)
51. Isaiah Foskey (DE)
56. Antwaun Powell-Ryland (DE)
91. McKinnley Jackson (DT)
95. Howard Cross III (DT)
50. Shaka Heyward (LB)
45. Liam Anderson (LB)
21. Bralyn Lux (CB)
28. Josh Newton (CB)
33. Daijahn Anthony (S)
Cut(18):
4. Sean Clifford (QB)
31. Kentrell Bullock (RB)
36. Kendall Milton (RB)
32. Gary Brightwell (RB)
15. Charlie Jones (WR)
19. Kendric Pryor (WR)
14. Jordan Moore (WR)
18. Xavier Johnson (WR)
48. Josh Kattus (TE)
77. Corey Robinson (OT)
60. Liam Brown (G)
68. Jordan Jefferson (DT)
43. Joe Giles-Harris (LB)
58. Eric Gentry (LB)
59. Jack Dingle (LB)
40. Jalen Kimber (CB)
41. Matthew McDoom (CB)
39. Russ Yeast (S)
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