The Bengals Need Trent Brown Insurance
Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
The most recent major free agent signing for Cincinnati was offensive tackle Trent Brown, who was signed to a one year, $4.75 million deal on March 19th. He will serve as the replacement for the serviceable but inconsistent Jonah Williams, who departed for the Cardinals in free agency.
Brown, who has played just over 50% of his career snaps at the right tackle position, will go back to that position after playing the last two seasons at left tackle, and Orlando Brown will remain at left tackle. While the Bengals seem to have their 2024 answer on the right side of the offensive line, the work for finding their long term answer for the offensive line is not and should not be done, especially given Trent Brown’s track record.
At his best, Trent Brown is an absolute stalwart of an offensive tackle, especially in one on one situations.
Trent Brown found himself in 1-on-1 situations on 88.3% of his pass blocking snaps last season, the highest rate among left tackles (min. 300 pass blocking snaps).
Brown allowed pressure on just 7.1% of those snaps, the 2nd-lowest rate among left tackles.#RuleTheJungle https://t.co/p26F38233Q pic.twitter.com/aEoA50GCFi
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) March 19, 2024
However, he had an up and down season in 2023 with the Patriots. While Brown performed well when he played, he had a messy divorce in New England. He grew increasingly frustrated as his time in New England came to a close, and his frustration reached a breaking point in Week 17 last season when Bill Belichick named him a healthy scratch for that week’s matchup against Buffalo.
“We played the players who wanted to play,” Bill Belichick said after that game.
Brown entered unrestricted free agency this offseason and signed with the Bengals, which seemed to give him a fresh start. One of the first people to make him feel welcome to Cincinnati before he signed was his former offensive line mate, Ted Karras.
“He said he loved it here. This is a great organization. It’s like a family over here,” Brown said to AllBengals. “I walked in the building this morning and he was in the hot tub getting ready to work out. That even added to it, him being here on March 19 and the offseason program doesn’t start for another month almost. That was a huge thing right there, just being where we came from where people would get out of there for a release any chance we had.”
The Bengals must, however, have an insurance plan in place should something go awry, especially since a lot of things went south for Brown last season. In addition, the 2019 Pro Bowler is on a one year deal, so Cincinnati does not have a definite answer for beyond this season.
Luckily, the Bengals are in a prime position to add that insurance policy in the draft, as they hold the 18th overall pick this year. Talented players such as Taliese Fuaga, JC Latham, and Amarius Mims may be available when Cincinnati is on the clock in round one. Selecting one of them may give Cincinnati that future building block, and having Trent Brown for at least 2024 would give that draft selection time to adjust to the NFL.
Of course, there is no guarantee that it will be successful. There is the possibility that those right tackle options are not available when the Bengals are on the clock. That possibility was increased with the news that the Saints, who are three picks ahead of the Bengals in this year’s draft, may not have their starting right tackle Ryan Ramczyk at all in 2024 due to knee issues. If that is the case, Duke Tobin will likely have to use a day two pick on a tackle instead.
In addition, fans in Cincinnati may have hesitations when it comes to selecting a tackle early, as recent early draft investments in offensive linemen such as Cedric Ogbuehi, Jake Fisher, Jackson Carman, and Billy Price have not lived up to the hype the way fans have hoped. That said, while some fans would be more comfortable acquiring a veteran as a safer move, those moves haven’t exactly panned out, either. Riley Reiff and La’el Collins, among others, did not last terribly long in the Queen City, despite hefty investments. If an issue persists, the team has to keep trying to fix it as best as they can until it’s no longer a weakness. It’s the same reason that the Jets shouldn’t stop drafting quarterbacks.
At least for the immediate future, the offensive line seems to be set with the acquisition of Trent Brown. That’s not to say, however, that moves won’t continue to be made to help keep Joe Burrow upright and prevent yet another season ending injury.
“I’m really excited about the guys we have,” Karras said. “We are going to add some more guys obviously in the draft, but I think we’ve got the guys to do something special.”
Brown remains optimistic heading into the 2024 season. When asked if he would be concerned if the Bengals took a right tackle early in the draft, Brown echoed the confidence he has in himself with three simple words.
“None at all.”
Love the confidence from Trent Brown #Bengals pic.twitter.com/4Fdw7zrUQN
— James Rapien (@JamesRapien) March 20, 2024
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