The Cincinnati Bengals are right on the precipice of challenging the Kansas City Chiefs as the leaders of the AFC. With Joe Burrow leading the charge, this team is looking incredibly tough to stop as they enter training camp.

But, as is with every single NFL roster across the league, there are still a few holes that could be plugged at this point in the off-season. If the Bengals want to close that gap, then they should look into making the following move.

The defense is pretty set for Cincinnati, and their pass rush looks to be one of the strongest parts of that side of the ball. Moving to the offensive side of the ball, Joe Mixon is still the starting running back alongside Burrow, but there is a noticeable lack of depth behind him.

The departure of Samaje Perine in free agency this off-season has left a large pass-catching void in the offense, and while Mixon certainly can step in and finally be that three-down back that everyone has been clamoring for, there needs to be another piece behind him. Trayveon Williams, Chris Evans, and rookie Chase Brown are all vying for that third-down role, but none of these three options look like the right fit for it.

Sign J.D. McKissic

While the likes of Dalvin Cook, Ezekiel Elliott, and Kareem Hunt are still out on the free agency market, those options would likely be wanting a starting role, or at least something larger than what the Bengals can offer. But by bringing in a receiving back like J.D. McKissic, the offensive game plan can remain mostly the same while still keeping Mixon fresh.

McKissic likely will be seen as an injury risk at this point in his career, having only played eight games last year and having only played a full season twice in his seven-year career. But with the passing attack already focused on Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, McKissic would not need to have as large a role as he has had in the past.

Having last suited up for the Washington Commanders, McKissic’s last ‘good’ season was back in 2020, when he had 85 carries (365 yards) and 80 receptions (589 yards) for 3 total TDs. Things looked to be on the right track for his time with Washington, but injuries and a plethora of other running backs on the roster eventually pushed him out.

He certainly is not a perfect fit for the Bengals, but Burrow could benefit from having someone like McKissic catching passes out of the backfield. While it is not a knock on Mixon to need to bring someone in for passing work, there is a proven history of Mixon typically having that secondary back to take that off of his workload.

With cap space far from an issue at this point (until Burrow’s mega-extension is finally agreed upon), the Bengals would be smart to target a receiving-first running back like McKissic to complement Mixon. Expecting a jump in Mixon’s receiving workload is certainly plausible, but it wouldn’t hurt to have another set of hands either.