Cincinnati Bengals: Early 53-man roster predictions 2018, quarterbacks

An early look at which players on the Cincinnati Bengals offseason roster will eventually make the final 53-man roster for the 2018 season. We start with the quarterbacks.

We are deep in the dregs of the Cincinnati Bengals and NFL offseason, folks. Outside of injuries and last-ditch free agent pickups, the only things happening don’t really provide much in the way of tangible news with any long-standing impact (even when there are positive gains, they can be quickly wiped away in an instant with another OTA or training camp practice).

The information which does trickle out does at least help pass the time. Even better, it provides fuel for the one thing which is fun and found in abundance during this part of the football calendar: rampant speculations and predictions!

With the rosters as full as they can be, now is a great time for an early look at who the team may decide is worthy of those coveted 53 available spots once the regular season kicks off. We’ll begin this exercise with the offensive side of the ball, starting with the…

Quarterbacks

* = starters; + = make roster

*Andy Dalton
+Matt Barkley
+Jeff Driskel
Logan Woodside

As he has every year since being drafted in 2011, Dalton will be in command of this team yet again. While he has plenty of flaws — enough to question whether or not the team should have continued with him as the starter — the fact that Cincinnati was willing to move down a handful of spots in the first round of a draft which saw four passers go in the top 10 selections shows the team isn’t ready to move past him.

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Perhaps they should be. According to Pro Football Reference, 2017 was one of his worst seasons to date: leading those metrics were his second-worst completion percentage (59.9), tied-lowest ANY/A (adjusted net yards per attempt; 5.65) and worst QBR (42.0). The team clearing thinks fixing an offensive line which gave up 81 sacks the past two seasons will improve things however, so for at least one more year he’s their guy. Still, outside of injury or a surprise trade, he’s not getting replaced this year.

For all of Dalton’s problems, none of the guys currently in tow can hold a candle to his success. The team does need to plan around what happens in case of injury though, and in the wake of A.J McCarron’s offseason departure Barkley and Driskel give them their best possible plan from what they have available on the roster.

Barkley, while flawed, brings some prior starting experience to the table. He started 6 games (and played a good portion of another) for Chicago a couple years ago, picking multiple touchdowns in three different contests. Unfortunately, the Bears won just one of his starts, and while he threw 8 total touchdowns he undermined those with 14 interceptions — accumulating two-or-more in five separate games. Still, beyond signing Colin Kaepernick (which the Eric Reid situation should remind you will not be happening) or spending a decent draft pick on someone (not likely in a QB class lacking midround-level options), there probably weren’t many better options to target.

Driskel gives the team someone who has been around the team a couple seasons. The fact that they determined him worth keeping despite McCarron’s presence as the clear No. 2 means they like something about him. Driskel doesn’t have much experience in pro games that count, but between his final college season (4,026 passing yards, 27 TD/8 INT) and a decent 2017 preseason (14-of-21, 164 yards, 1 TD), he has a skill-set the team feels confident in utilizing if he’s forced into action.

Next: NFL 2018: Rookie class bold predictions

The team did grab a quarterback in the draft in Woodside, but he was the last quarterback selected and taken at the end of the final round. Between his short-ish stature (6-1) and lacking arm strength, he doesn’t portend to being a successful long-term option. If he impresses in training camp though, he could become the team’s next Driskel.

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