Bengals head into offseason looking for answers to familiar questions
CINCINNATI -- Now that a couple of days have passed since the Bengals' season ended with a one-and-done playoff appearance for the fourth straight year, it's time to start looking at 2015.
First and foremost, two things fans will have to accept, even if they might clamor for something otherwise:
*Marvin Lewis will be back as the head coach.
*Andy Dalton will be back as the quarterback.
Lewis has one year left on his contract and his relationship with franchise owner/president/general manager Mike Brown is on firm ground. The only way Lewis doesn't return as the coach is if he chooses not to coach.
Dalton's contract extension signed at the start of training camp last August pretty much guarantees that barring injury he's going to be the starter the next couple of seasons. That doesn't mean the Bengals can't bring in a veteran to push Dalton more or that A.J. McCarron, last year's fifth-round draft choice, isn't given more of an opportunity in the offseason workouts and camps or even that another quarterback is drafted this year, but this job still belongs to No. 14.
The Bengals' focus this offseason will be on improving depth and getting better production from their front seven on defense. The foundation for making another run to a postseason berth is there but as Sunday's 26-10 loss at Indianapolis showed, the team still lacks high-end playmakers producing when it counts most against the NFL's upper echelon of competition.
The Bengals were outscored 270-189 while going 3-5-1 against teams that reached this year's postseason.
Injuries certainly played a large role in the season ending as quickly as it did. A team doesn't go into a season expecting big things out of wide receiver Marvin Jones and tight end Tyler Eifert or linebacker Vontaze Burfict but get the equivalence of three games played between them and not be affected negatively. Toss in multiple games missed by wide receiver A.J. Green and right tackle Andre Smith and that negative effect is greater.
Every team deals with injuries. The Bengals have had those players in the past and reached the same result as this season. So what changes?
"I think basically for our city, for our fans that we weren't able to get it done," said Lewis on Monday during his end-of-season press conference. "You know you're fortunate to have earned your way into the playoffs again, but we're not here just to go to the playoffs. I mean that's not part of the thing. In fact that's not even a goal.
"Our goals are to be undefeated at home, win the AFC North, and be world champions. We don't talk about going to the playoffs, we talk about these things along the way that give you the opportunity to control your destiny all the time. So we're not satisfied with just being in the playoffs. I know there is a lot to be proud of for our players and the things they've accomplished, but yet there's more to it than just getting there, and it's winning, and moving forward."
Moving forward will start with getting ready for the draft and free agency. Free agency begins March 10. The draft is from April 30-May 2 but before then the Senior Bowl and its practice take place Jan. 19-24 and the NFL Combine in Indianapolis is Feb. 17-23.
The Bengals can begin the offseason workout programs for players on April 20.
"The challenge of the NFL every year, which I think we have done a very good job of, is staying young," said Lewis. "We'll continue to stay young as we move forward. We mature on one side, but we continue to churn the other side. We've got to continue to draft good and develop our young players. The coaches know that we're going to play young players. (Rookie linebacker) Marquis Flowers goes into the game (at Indianapolis) and plays significant snaps that are meaningful. Those are things that we're going to have to continue to do with guys like that, who get an opportunity to go in and play and make significant contributions."
The Bengals have 13 players who are eligible to become unrestricted free agents this offseason: left guard Clint Boling, quarterback Jason Campbell, tight end Jermaine Gresham, middle linebacker Rey Maualuga, safety Taylor Mays, offensive tackle Marshall Newhouse, cornerback Terence Newman, kicker Mike Nugent, running back Cedric Peerman, wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher, tight end Alex Smith, wide receiver Brandon Tate and right tackle Eric Winston.
Outside linebacker Emmanuel Lamur and defensive tackle Devon Still are eligible to become restricted free agents, while tight end Kevin Brock and cornerback Chris Lewis-Harris will be exclusive rights free agents.
Teams are free to negotiate with and sign those of their own players who are potential unrestricted free agents up until March 10 when those players then hit the open market.
The top three targets for the Bengals to re-sign as UFAs should be Boling, Maualuga and Nugent (in alphabetical order). Gresham is a former first-round pick and has had productive seasons but his decision not to play at Cleveland on Dec. 14 because of a toe injury when the team fully expected him to be able to play didn't sit well with many in the organization.
Newman has had three productive seasons with the Bengals after being released by Dallas in 2012. Newman said on Monday that he would be taking time to contemplate his future after finishing his 12th season in the NFL. He may decide to retire but chances are if he does come back for another season it won't be with the Bengals.
They've drafted Dre Kirkpatrick and Darqueze Dennard in the first round in the past three years and it's time they get on the field. Kirkpatrick did a lot more of that late in the season and played well.
Any moves the Bengals make have to be done with the idea of being more than one-and-done.
"The whole reason to play the game is to be the best you can be and to win a Super Bowl," said Newman. "This team has a better chance than some of the other teams that didn't make the playoffs and didn't have the greatest of seasons. The foundation is there for sure. You've got good coaches, you've got good players. It's just about being consistent and doing things and making plays when the opportunity arises."
