The 2023 season did not go according to plan for the Cincinnati Bengals. With a trip to the Super Bowl two years ago and another AFC Championship appearance last season, the expectation was for the Bengals to be right in that mix again this season. But injuries derailed any hope for another big playoff run and left the Bengals on the outside looking in of the playoff picture. Quarterback Joe Burrow sustained a calf injury in training camp and that compromised his play for the first month of the season. Then a a hand injury ended up costing Burrow the rest of the season. Wide receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins ended up missing time as well. It just was not the Bengals' season this year.
But make no mistake about it: The Bengals are not going away any time soon. They will be right back in the title conversation next season, but they will have to make some tweaks in the offseason. The 2024 NFL Draft will be the primary method for the Bengals to do just that, but the Bengals have some options in free agency as well.
The Bengals have upwards of $69 million in cap space to play with this offseason. They can use that to make some big upgrades to their roster. Three NFL free agents stand out as targets the Bengals should pursue and use that money on.
Tee Higgins, Wide Receiver
This is cheating a little bit considering Higgins currently is a Bengal. But, he is still projected to be a free agent, so he would apply for this conversation. The Bengals just have to keep Tee Higgins around. Yes, they still have Ja'Marr Chase as their alpha number-one receiver, but Higgins is also an integral part of what they do. Chase and Higgins form the best wide receiver duo in the NFL together and provide insurance when one of the two is injured. Higgins has really stepped up in the past when Chase has been forced to miss time.
Tee Higgins in four games without Ja'Marr Chase (shoulder) last year:
* 26.2% target share
* 92.8 ypg
* Four top-24 finishesHiggins was targeted on 3 (25%) of Browning's 12 passes after Chase was injured Saturday.
— John Daigle (@notJDaigle) December 18, 2023
Higgins is absolutely a No. 1 receiver in the NFL, but he just happens to be on a team that has one of the few receivers in the NFL that is better than him. But that should not stop the Bengals from paying him like a number-one receiver or doing whatever it takes to keep him. That might even include hitting Higgins with the franchise tag, if that is what it takes.
Higgins battled injuries this season, but he put up at least 908 yards in each of his first three seasons and went over 1,000 yards in each of the last two seasons before the 2023 season. The Bengals have to keep him. He's priority No. 1 in free agency.
Dalton Schultz, Tight End
If the Bengals want to add to their arsenal of pass catchers, first they need to hold on to Tee Higgins by any means. Next, they should look for an upgrade at tight end. Tanner Hudson did a nice job towards the second half of the season for the Bengals at that spot, but he also is a veteran journeyman.
They could use a true answer to that position, and that very well could be Dalton Schultz. Schultz had a career season back in 2021 as a Dallas Cowboy, where he put up 808 yards and eight touchdowns on 78 receptions. That season, Schultz ranked sixth among tight ends in targets, third in receptions, and 11th in yards per route run according to playerprofiler.com.
Schultz's play has taken a bit of a dip in the last two seasons; his yards per route run has fallen from 1.75 in 2021 to 1.55 in 2022 and 1.58 in 2023. But those are still very solid numbers and represent a monumental upgrade over the Bengals' current tight end situation, which consists of the aforementioned Tanner Hudson, Drew Sample, and Mitchell Wilcox (they also have Irv Smith Jr., but he is slated to be a free agent himself). The Bengals would really be smart to give Burrow another trusted weapon in the middle of the field, and Schultz could be that guy.
Christian Wilkins, Defensive Tackle
It would be a major surprise if the Miami Dolphins allowed Christian Wilkins to leave their building in free agency. With that being said, the Bengals have almost $70 million in cap space, while the Dolphins are currently over $42 million above the projected salary cap. It is possible that they have to let Wilkins because of how star-studded the rest of their roster is.
If that's the case, the Bengals should not hesitate to pounce. Cincinnati ranked 25th in the NFL in EPA allowed per rush this season. Wilkins, meanwhile, is a great run stuffer and even adds some juice as a pass rusher from the middle too. After the Bengals' starting defensive tackle DJ Reader tore his ACL a few weeks ago, now would be a good time for them to find an upgrade at that position. Wilkins would be just that.
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