Khalil Herbert Will Fit Perfectly With Chase Brown
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The Bengals had a vision of a tandem of Zack Moss and Chase Brown handling the backfield for the 2024 season. It was a multi-dimensional, cost effective backfield that would enable Joe Burrow to shine as a passer. Moss would be the downhill runner who thrives in pass protection, and Chase Brown is the elusive speedster who can make big plays and keep the offense going. While that vision was effective for a time, the Bengals received unfortunate news about Moss that put that plan on hold.
Per @MikeGarafolo, Zack Moss is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season with a neck injury.
The issue was discovered late last week, and according to Garafolo will require two months of rest before re-evaluation. pic.twitter.com/VWUt86nW2s
— Charlie Clifford (@char_cliff) November 5, 2024
While Brown was superb on Sunday, carrying 27 times for 120 yards and adding a receiving touchdown, expecting that kind of workload for Brown every week is simply unrealistic. The backup was Trayveon Williams, whose role on the Bengals has been limited to occasionally returning kicks. The Bengals needed a complement to Chase Brown, who played college football at Illinois, so they figured, “Hey, why not go after a guy who plays professional football in Illinois?”
Nobody wants to hear this…
But I see Cincinnati as a realistic destination for Khalil Herbert.
With Zack Moss out indefinitely, they need a bigger back to complement Chase Brown.
Herbert would be the perfect fit for this role as the Bengals look to make a playoff push.
— Joe Beldner (@JoeBeldner) November 4, 2024
And it was so.
Thank you God 🙏🏾🐅 #WhoDey
— Khalil Herbert (@JuiceHerbert) November 5, 2024
All it took was a 2025 seventh round pick to get him.
Herbert has had a solid career up to this point as a complimentary option to starters. In the four years since being drafted by the Chicago Bears, he has 1,791 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. In the past two seasons, he has logged 788 and 745 receiving yards, respectively.
While his production was much more significant in 2022 and 2023, he has seen limited action with Chicago this season logging a mere 8 carries for 16 yards, with one of those carries going for a touchdown. That stat line is a result of being vaulted to the bottom of the depth chart by D’Andre Swift and Roschon Johnson.
In filling the Zack Moss void, Khalil Herbert was an apt and cost effective option. Herbert is entering the final year of his rookie deal that he signed with the Bears prior to his rookie season in 2021. They are nearly identical in size, as Herbert is 5’9”, 212 lbs and Moss is 5’10”, 215 lbs. He’s a speedy, downhill runner who is a capable pass blocker who can make up for the injury to Zack Moss, give Chase Brown some relief if and when he needs it, and further the Bengals’ plans for their backfield.
“I hear (Herbert is) good in pass protection,” Burrow said. “That might be tough to get him blocking the right guy on third down blitzes this week. So we’ll see what his role ends up being. But number one, that, and number two, just take some carries off Chase (Brown). He had 27 carries last week, played great, played great in the past game too. So now maybe throw in a couple runs here and there, a couple passes to take the load off Chase a little bit.”
It’s unrealistic to think that Herbert will have a major role in the upcoming Thursday night game against Baltimore, as per my calendar, Thursday is in two days. It would require Herbert to get up to speed on the playbook, practice with the team, and gain a full rapport with Burrow. There is no doubt he will get at least a little playing time when the time comes, but he likely won’t see full action until after Cincinnati’s mini-bye when they head to So-Fi Stadium to take on the L.A. Chargers in Week 11. Heading into the stretch run of the season, however, Bengals fans will see Herbert filling the Zack Moss role as the complement to Chase Brown who runs with a low center of gravity and can provide a solid option in pass protection. He has also only fumbled twice in his career, only one of which was a lost fumble.
The Bengals reportedly had plans to address their defensive line, but those plans did not come to fruition, and even if they did, the situation was not a dire emergency. A running back, on the other hand, became an immediate need with Moss’ season ending neck injury. When the 4pm deadline rolled around, there were rumors surrounding players such as Giants pass rusher Azeez Ojulari, along with Titans defenders Sebastian Joseph-Day and Arden Key. However, no transaction of that nature happened, and Khalil Herbert was their lone acquisition on the trade market.
Notably, Herbert is one of two trades the Bengals have made since 1972. The other one was B.J. Finney, who the Bengals acquired in 2020 along with a draft pick, in exchange for Carlos Dunlap. During his time in Cincinnati, Finney played all of two special teams snaps. Herbert is expected to make much more of an impact in Cincinnati, as he fits the mold of what the Bengals envisioned for their backfield prior to 2024, and Chase Brown won’t have to carry the ball 27 times every single week.
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