The Cincinnati Bengals tossed out some big surprises and some notable names missed the cut on the initial 53-man roster at final cutdowns early this week.
While navigating the path to 53 to meet the NFL’s deadline, Zac Taylor and the Bengals elected to go heavy at some surprising spots, light at others and leave some fan favorites and notable names exposed to the waiver wire.
Here’s a rundown of the bigger surprises and snubs in the aftermath of Bengals final cuts.
Seth McLaughlin
This one stuck out to fans in a big way and rightfully so. A popular undrafted free agent, McLaughlin only fell out of the draft while he worked back from a torn Achilles. He got back in time and was working with the team over the summer. Things are so bad on the interior offensive line depth that he could’ve been viewed as a roster lock. It’s easy to take for granted that he’ll just slip onto the practice squad. Are 31 teams just going to ignore a healthy Rimington Award winner again?
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Light on the OL
Speaking of the miserable offensive line depth, the Bengals only kept eight. That’s usually 10 or more. A refresher on the eight:
So, they’re trusting Patrick to start and a rookie Ford and Rivers to back up multiple spots on the inside and out. Meanwhile, they let go of names like Jaxson Kirkland and even Andrew Coker. More moves will come, potentially on the waiver wire, but the point here is simple: This is still a big problem going into the regular season.
Safety isn’t safe
Safety is a mess, too. Geno Stone and Jordan Battle are back as starters and PJ Jules slipped onto the final roster with Daijahn Anthony going to short-term IR. But those last two names don’t feel safe if something else becomes available. Like guard, it’s a problem area fans were pointing at and in a little disbelief that they didn’t better address this offseason.
LB Maema Njongmeta and WR Isaiah Williams
Both of these guys lost out on the numbers games. Njongmeta made the final roster as an undrafted free agent last year but lost out to Shaka Heyward here. Williams was a very strong waiver wire claim last year, only for Mitchell Tinsley’s ascension to shove him aside.
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This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Bengals’ biggest surprises and snubs at final cuts, 53-man roster
Reporting by Chris Roling, Bengals Wire / Bengals Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
