Taylor is hoping it helps the offense continue to evolve as a whole.
“We’ll just see how all the chemistry unfolds as we get those guys in the building and get them working together, but again, each year is -- starting over is the wrong word because there’s a lot of things for us to continue to build on,” Taylor said. “But we can’t expect it just because we had success last year that we’re going to continue to have success. There’s a lot of work that’s got to go on behind the scenes to make sure that that happens.”
All three players have proven themselves at a high level: Collins helped Ezekiel Elliott to rushing titles in 2016 and 2018, and Cappa and Karras have won three Super Bowl rings between them – Cappa with the Bucs in 2020 and Karras with New England to end the 2016 and 2018 seasons.
The Bengals fell just short of their first Super Bowl victory in February when Burrow’s fourth-down pass fell incomplete on the final drive, as he was forced to rush a desperation attempt while almost getting sacked. The Rams won 23-20, and Burrow finished the season being sacked 70 times in 20 games.
Taylor said within a week of that loss the Bengals were having conversations about upgrading the offensive line. Although he and Director of Player Personnel Duke Tobin pointed out that the team still managed to get to the Super Bowl and produced a 1,000-yard rusher and two 1,000-yard receivers, it was clear the organization needed to better protect the quarterback it drafted first overall in 2020. He sustained multiple injuries in his first season back from major ACL/MCL surgery as a rookie.
“There wasn’t any time to waste,” Taylor said. “… We did target that as an area we needed to improve and so (offensive line coach) Frank (Pollack) certainly did a lot of work there, evaluating all these players, finding the right fits for what will help us going forward.”
Taylor said the scheme of the offense won’t change much, but depending on the strengths and weaknesses of this particular group, it could open up some things or impact the volume of certain types of plays the Bengals ran in the past. Those things will start to come together once the offseason workouts begin, starting as early as April 18 and into training camp in August.
The biggest difference the Bengals are hoping for with the new offensive line is more time for Burrow to make plays. Clips circulated after the Super Bowl showing that Ja’Marr Chase had beaten cornerback Jalen Ramsey on that last offensive play of the game, and one can only wonder what might have been if Burrow had another second to see it.
“The longer he has back there, the better, and we feel like this can also improve our running game as well,” Taylor said. “Anytime you add some of these veteran players like we did, that played at a high level, specifically Ted and Alex have won three Super Bowls between the two of them, so they know what it’s like to compete to the bitter end. ... That’s experience that we look to draw on.”
The Bengals will go from a team that had ranked among the bottom three in pass protection, according to ProFootballFocus.com grades, to now having what experts consider one of the most improved offensive lines.
Jonah Williams returns at left tackle, and the only thing left to sort out is who will play left guard. Taylor said 2021 second-round pick Jackson Carman will be in the mix there, and the hope is he takes a big step in Year 2, especially as he returns to the side he played throughout college at Clemson, where he was a left tackle.
“We still see a bright future for Jackson, and certainly saw a lot of flashes of that over the course of the season,” Taylor said. “Now, it’s just the overall consistency. He’s been in this league for a year now. He knows what it all looks like over the course of 12 months, and the work that’s required, some of the challenges you’re going to face from some of the D-Linemen, a lot of the different looks, you’ve got to be able to adapt to. ”
If the line comes together as the Bengals hope, it could help them become one of the more potent offenses in the league. The weapons are there with Burrow and the other skill guys, but Taylor doesn’t want that to be the assumption.
“That’s really the messaging for the players and coaches: There’s a lot of hard work that we put in last May, June, August to (help) us hit the ground running as the season started,” Taylor said. “Our guys I know will have an understanding that we’ve got to really start at ground zero, regroup with some of the chemistry of some of the new players, make sure that they fit in the mix (with) some of the draft picks that are coming up. ”
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