Bengals
Bengals executive Duke Tobin said they want to solidify their offensive and defensive lines this offseason.
“There hasn’t been a year we don’t want to continue to develop both lines of scrimmage,” Tobin said, via Geoff Hobson of the team’s site. “That’s where the game is won and lost. There are great players on every team that are great skill players and you need them to make big plays in big moments and they want the ball in their hands in big moments. But the game is won and lost on the line of scrimmage and everyone is down here at the Senior Bowl focused on the line of scrimmage. Those are the guys that are hard to find. You get a great rusher and it makes teams have to rely on their tackles. And if they’re not up to it, it’s a big problem. You want to be that problem for the other team and solve that problem for yourself.”
Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase is entering the final year of his contract in 2024, while WR Tee Higgins is set to be a free agent. Tobin said Chase remains in their “long-term plans” and they’d also like to bring back Higgins.
“We like Ja’Marr. He’s in our long-term plans. He’s a high-level player in this league. And we want to keep those kinds of players on our team,” Tobin said. “I want Tee Higgins back. Everyone on our team would like Tee Higgins back. There’s a pie and there are things we can do and can’t do because of it. We’ll see.”
Tobin praised S Daxton Hill for his ability to play multiple roles but wants them to identify “what exactly we want out of him.”
“A rare athlete,” Tobin said. “Great speed, courageous in the run game, can come out of the middle of the field and defend the go ball. I think he’s a guy that can play multiple roles, but I don’t think we want to make him a jack of all and master of none. We have to decide from a coaching standpoint what exactly we want out of him and make him a great player at that position.”
Browns
Despite making the playoffs and arguably overachieving on offense given all the circumstances with injuries, the Browns shook things up first thing this offseason by letting go of longtime OC Alex Van Pelt. The replacement is former Bills OC Ken Dorsey, which sends a clear signal that Cleveland is determined to continue trying to maximize QB Deshaun Watson. Browns GM Andrew Berry cited Dorsey’s past work with mobile quarterbacks as something that made him stand out.
“We thought Ken was a bright, creative, and innovative offensive mind,” Berry said via the Athletic’s Zac Jackson. “He has an outstanding track record both as a quarterbacks coach and as a coordinator. You look at the work that he did with Cam Newton, you look at the work that he did with Josh Allen, at the fact that he had two years as a coordinator in Buffalo where he directed top-five units in each year, and it’s (impressive).
“He’s been very creative in terms of the type of offensive system that he’s been able to implement. Even though it’s been what you could call a spread, dual-threat quarterback base (offense), how it looked in Carolina versus how it looked in Buffalo were much different. We think he’ll do a really nice job in the coordinator role for us.”
Ravens
Ravens DT Justin Madubuike and LB Patrick Queen are impending free agents, with GM Eric DeCosta telling reporters he has “a good plan” for both players.
“It’s beneficial to just not talk about things,” DeCosta said, via Pro Football Talk. “There is a value sometimes to not really showing your cards or showing your hand. We’ll have all those decisions made at some point coming soon. We don’t have a lot of time.”
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