AFC North WR Corps: Cincinnati Bengals
The AFC North has far and away the most intriguing group of wide receivers corps in the league. From top to bottom, all four teams are very fascinating at the wideout position. All four clubs are worth taking a deeper look in to. The final edition focuses on the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Bengals current situation is similar to the Pittsburgh Steelers. We all know A.J. Green is the top dog here. There is no debate. He’s an elite NFL receiver and is the clear leader of this group. Green has never failed to top the 1,000 yard mark, has never failed to catch double-digit touchdowns in a full 16-game season and his lowest reception total in 16 games is 86. He’s an absolute monster and probably one of the five best wideouts in the game.
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The loss of their WR2 and WR3 Marvin Jones and Mohamed Sanu has turned this passing attack upside down behind their superstar. This preseason and training camp is huge for their WRs corps. Yes, there are other wideouts in the mix, but the two guys that are and should garner the most attention are second-round pick Tyler Boyd and veteran and Super Bowl champion Brandon LaFell.
The offseason has gone well for Boyd to this point. He’s a versatile wideout and looks like an upgraded version of Sanu. Everyone surrounding and on the team has praised him to this point. Quarterback Andy Dalton loves what he’s seen out of the rookie and says he’s made a “huge jump” just from OTAs and training camp. He’s praised him on multiple occasions. The coaching staff has been impressed and say they view him as an immediate slot receiver and expect him to contribute immediately. Things are looking very positive for the rookie.
I know I wrote that Boyd is viewed as the slot receiver. That would not make him the WR3. Randall Cobb is clearly the WR2 ahead of Davante Adams or whoever they run out there now and Jarvis Landry and Julian Edelman are their respective team’s WR1s. Sorry, just know the comments are coming.
LaFell, on the other hand, is a proven veteran with a track record. He’s coming off a lackluster and injury-plagued 2015 season. Nevertheless, he caught 74 passes for 953 yards and seven touchdowns in 2014. The former New England Patriot is the favorite to start on the outside opposite Green.
With that said, aside from being 6’3″, 210 pounds, I’m not particularly enamored with his skill set and he’s been underwhelming to me since being drafted in the third-round out of LSU to the Carolina Panthers in 2010. Of course there is ability there, he’s just never wowed me.
Even during his career year with the Pats he was the fourth-best option in the passing attack. Much like the rest of his career to this point, I expect him to not be awful, but plagued with mediocrity.
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I fully believe Boyd will emerge as the second WR in the group. He will outperform LaFell and prove himself to be an asset for at least the remainder of his rookie contract. There is a chance he explodes out of the gate quickly with Tyler Eifert likely to miss up to the first month and Tyler Kroft now injured as well. My prediction is Boyd will be the clear second option behind Green. LaFell will have his role like he always does. He’s just not anything to write home about.