‘Less moving parts’: Bengals making progress on the O-line
One year ago, the Cincinnati Bengals opened training camp attempting to rebuild a struggling offensive line.
With four new starters, that process took time and injuries took their toll. Still, the Bengals felt comfortable enough with their returning linemen and free agent acquisitions − tackles Orlando Brown Jr. and Cody Ford − that they decided against addressing the position in April’s NFL Draft.
“Less moving parts than last year, for sure,” Bengals offensive line coach and run game coordinator Frank Pollack said. “There’s just better overall communication amongst each other from the last couple of years because we’ve got more veteran depth.”
While there are fewer moving parts, there are still decisions to be made. The Bengals held on to Jonah Williams even after he requested a trade in March.
He’s now flipped sides and is competing with third-year man Jackson Carman for the starting right tackle spot.
Pollack has been impressed with Williams, who is trying to navigate a position battle after recovering from surgery for a dislocated knee cap.
“He looks like he’s been there a few years,” Pollack said. “It shows that he took the challenge and worked hard on it every chance he got while he was working on his knee . ... It’s been a lot more seamless and smooth than I would’ve anticipated for any guy.”
Carman started camp strong, but his cup “kind of ran over a little bit,” when it came to installs, according to Pollack.
Pollack added that there’s no timetable to name a starting right tackle for Week 1 and both Williams and Carman will get a chance to battle it out.
Starting right guard Alex Cappa left practice Sunday with what Pollack called a “little strain.” He added that it was precautionary and “no big deal.”
For 11-on-11 drills, Trey Hill slid into the starting right guard role. Hill, a sixthround pick in 2021, and fifth-year guard Max Scharping, who was acquired on waivers from the Texans last year, are trying to provide value with versatility at both guard and center.
“It’s to see who can be really comfortable at both of those spots for us,” Pollack said.