As the Cincinnati Bengals enter another season with high expectations, questions remain about how the franchise is supporting quarterback Joe Burrow. The Bengals have not advanced as an organization in ways that are standard in the current National Football League landscape.
The article notes concerns regarding ownership and management. It asks, “Was it an issue of a son, Mike Brown, who inherited his father’s, Paul Brown’s, franchise, like other children of NFL owners don’t have solid football acumen? (…) Is it that Mike Brown doesn’t understand how the league works, or is he just too frugal to put the football personnel around the Bengals to build a winner?” The writer also highlights that despite multiple draft failures involving players such as Andre Smith and Jackson Carman, Duke Tobin remains in charge of player personnel. It states: “Any other franchise with consecutive NFL Draft busts would change things up. Andre Smith, Myles Murphy, Cordell Volson, Michael Jordan, and Jackson Carman are a few names on that list for the Bengals. Despite these misses, Duke Tobin, the de facto GM with the title of ‘Director of Player Personnel’, still remains employed. (…) If this were any other team in the NFL, you’d imagine that Tobin would have been fired. Other NFL owners would not accept Tobin’s ineptitude in drafting starting-caliber offensive and defensive linemen.”
The article contends that “Whatever the reasoning is behind Tobin still having a job, the Cincinnati Bengals have to step into the 21st century and understand their opportunity to win is now, with Joe Burrow as the quarterback.” Criticism extends to spending priorities: “A winning organization starts from ownership and works its way down into management. Unfortunately, the people in charge in Cincinnati haven’t learned the team-building philosophies that have proven to work over the years.” The piece describes an imbalance between offensive payroll at $172.3 million and a defense payroll ranked 29th in the league.
Focusing on talent acquisition strategies and resource allocation, it says: “That requires big scouting departments. The Bengals, as of now, have one of the smallest scouting departments in the NFL due to the frugality of Mike Brown which has to change because it holds the Bengals back.” There are specific criticisms about missed opportunities for roster improvement through free agency: “The Bengals recently hosted free agent Dalton Risner to fix the right guard position only to let Risner leave without a deal (…) Something like that cannot happen.”
Defensive performance is also questioned: “On the other side of the ball, the Bengals have one of the worst interior defensive lines in the league. B.J. Hill is older and is a serviceable backup at best (…).” Preseason games against teams like Washington Commanders and Philadelphia Eagles exposed defensive weaknesses according to observers cited.
The piece suggests philosophical changes may be necessary for organizational improvement: “This is all about philosophy and mindset. Things have to change in Cincinnati.” Facility infrastructure differences within their division are pointed out: “Every team in AFC North has a state-of-the-art indoor practice facility besides Bengals… before bubble they would train at Cincinnati Bearcats’ indoor practice facility.” The commentary concludes with “The Bengals have to step into 21st century with how they operate and come to realization that first-class organizations spend money both on roster and on team facility when your franchise quarterback is in his prime.”
