By Ethan Herzog:
The 2022 Cincinnati Bengals were a force to be reckoned with for much of the season. After matching their best record in franchise history for the 4th time (12-4), and once again competing for the AFC Title, let alone a Super Bowl, Cincinnati is looking to solidify itself as a contender for years to come. Now to do that, especially come the 2023 season, there are holes that need filled, trades to be made and free agent signings to consider. Now the obvious signings that will be looked at are the offensive line, which will be talked about. However, there’s one more player I’d like you to consider; and that be the Las Angeles Rams veteran linebacker Bobby Wagner.
Wagner, coming up on his 11th year in the league, after being drafted in the second round of the 2012 NFL Draft to the Seattle Seahawks, has been nothing less of a key asset for whichever team he may be a part of. In his rookie season with Seattle, he led the team in tackles with 140. Fast forward to 2022 with the Rams, he’s leading the team in tackles with 140 tackles. Coincidence? I don’t think so. Wagner also recorded 6.0 sacks during the 2022 season with his new team, tied for 55th in the NFL with the likes of Dante Fowler Jr., and DeMarcus Lawrence. Over the course of his career, he has recorded 1,523 tackles (799 of them are solo), 13 interceptions, 30.5 sacks, and has 6 forced fumbles. Adding Wagner, at a reasonable price, could work wonders for the Bengals come the 2023 season. A veteran linebacker coming into a linebacking core with Germaine Pratt and Logan Wilson, two guys who have excelled in the past few years, would work wonders for this Cincinnati defense that has been running a 4-3 set under Lou Anarumo.
Now the position that all Bengals fans would love to see some depth at, the offensive line; more-so the offensive tackle position. The Bengals ranked 16th overall in run blocking, and pass blocking according to footballoutsiders.com, recording 44 sacks (11th in the NFL) and 3.98 yards per carry (28th in NFL) in 2022, and with two injuries coming in the past two years just before the post-season, Riley Reif in 2021 and La’el Collins in 2022, having depth at the tackle position could be the answer Cincinnati needs, and the depth could be found in recently released tackle Taylor Lewan, who has spent his entire career with the Tennessee Titans to this point, after being a first-round draft pick in the 2014 draft. Since 2014, Lewan has only given up 21.50 sacks, averaging only 2.3 sacks a season, and has not allowed a sack in five post-season starts.