For the third time in their history, the Cincinnati Bengals came as close as you can get to the promised land, but for the third time in their history they were denied entry. For a team that allowed 55 sacks, even getting to the Super Bowl was remarkable, but let's not forget that they absolutely deserved to win each of the three playoff games that led to it.

 

Now, with the AFC essentially turning into a nuclear arms race the likes of which hasn't been seen since the height of the Cold War, attention shifts from enjoying the victories of last season, to the needs of this coming one. The questions surrounding the offensive line have partially been answered through the signing of prize free agent tackle La'el Collins and the drafting of guard Cordell Volson. However, questions still remain to be answered elsewhere, so here's 2 moves the Bengals must make to complete their roster for the 2022 season.

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Bengals Moves After 2022 NFL Draft

1. Sign TE Kyle Rudolph

With the departure of CJ Uzomah for the Jets, tight end became a bit more of a need going into the draft, but the signing of Hayden Hurst negated that a little bit. Help could still be used, however, and Rudolph would be the perfect secondary option.

Rudolph hasn't caught 40 or more passes in a season since 2018, and he only caught one touchdown in each of the last two seasons. The Bengals may not be able to replace Uzomah individually with either Hurst or Rudolph, but to lift a quote off of Moneyball, they can replace him in the aggregate. Rudolph accounted for 257 yards and just the one touchdown last season, while Hurst had 221 yards and three scores. This almost perfectly replaces Uzomah's 493 yards and five touchdowns.

This also makes sense considering the shift in NFL offenses away from using a single bellcow at any one position. Sure, exceptions like the 49ers with George Kittle exist, but those are just that, exceptions. Most teams now use multiple tight ends, and a Kyle Rudolph signing would allow the Bengals that flexibility, which was threatened at times last season by injuries to Uzomah.

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2. Sign CB Kyle Fuller

Another issue the Bengals had at times last season was in their secondary. They don't really need a shutdown corner, but more guys to help fill out the depth so that options like Eli Apple don't have to see significant snap counts where they might have their weaknesses show. The Bengals did draft Cam Taylor-Britt out of Nebraska, but more help is always needed. Fuller didn't have the kind of season most expected in Denver in 2021, and would thus be incredibly cheap for a corner of his talent.

Of course, Fuller is now 30, which is a barrier most corners never return form from, but perhaps in a rotational role alongside Apple, Mike Hilton, and Chidobe Awuzie, enough of Fuller's former glory can be returned to make him incredibly valuable to Zac Taylor and company. In the AFC Championship, the Bengals were absolutely dreadful defending the pass in the first half, but they got enough out of their players when they really needed it to get the lead back and win that game.

It's not too much a stretch of the imagination to suggest the same could be done with Fuller if given the opportunity, and that's why he's included here.