Young WR's vs. Young CB's

[CrashDavisSports]

I think our young CB's with great speed (sub 4.4) will really benefit from having to play against our offense and WR core in OTA's and Training Camp. We have such a talented roster, but even as well as we played last year on defense and how many guys we added to the mix without really losing too much, I still defense is our weakness after bolstering the Oline. With that said, I want to see that offensive line protect Burrow for a month before I declare the line fixed.

We have playmakers and depth at every position on this team, minus TE really. I think Hurst will even be an upgrade over CJ, but the depth is still weak unless Thad steps up and becomes a playmaker.

Where we were very lucky last year was health. We stayed pretty healthy overall and that will make a huge impact if your stars are staying on the field. Baltimore was riddled. I expect them to be a nightmare this year. We can't ever beat Cleveland, or maybe it is just Mayfield we can't seem to beat. Either way, Cleveland has had our number last few years.

Should be an exciting and fun year if we can keep our difference makers healthy.

 

[cincygrad]

I recently watched the four postseason games from last season. The thing that really stood out to me was how good the defense was during the postseason. The offense had it's moments and Burrow came up big late in games, but they were inconsistent moving the football and protection was awful. But again, the D was super impressive. They played 4 teams that could score points and they gave all of them fits. I want to see how much that late season success translates this season. It seemed like Lou was dialed in on schemes and the versatility of the D really led to success. If they are healthy again this year I think they can be even better - I also think they play with a bit of a chip on their shoulder because all the attention goes to our offense. If Dax or CTB bring some depth to the secondary and Ossai can add to the pass rush, they could be a top 10 unit.

 

[Cincyfan78]

The only thing I would like to have seen was to add another CB for that CB2 spot. I just don't trust Apple. He had a nice year, no doubt, but I'm just not sure I see him being that good again. Hope I'm wrong, but still would have liked to land another guy to help, especially from a depth perspective.