How does one evaluate need vs perception of need? It’s very simple to look at Andy Dalton and Marvin Lewis lack of playoff success over the last four seasons and question whether Dalton is the guy to lead this team to a Super Bowl. That is perception of need. The reality? The NFL is a Quarterback driven league and there are a bevy of capable signal callers. The elites like Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, and Peyton Manning don’t come around often and when you find a capable passer like Dalton you’d be advised to lock him up and start to focus on other areas of need. Dalton’s teammate, Bengals superstar Wide Receiver AJ Green came to his Quarterback’s defense recently saying the team as a whole needed to play better and it was unfair to place the majority of the blame on the Bengals leader.
I personally would cite key injuries to skill position players such as Marvin Jones, Green, and Tyler Eifert as big reasons for Dalton’s regression last season. Over the next week or so I am going to look at all of the Bengals needs before the upcoming 2015 NFL Draft in Chicago. I won’t give names of players I think the Bengals should draft because it’s far too early in the process and would be an excercise of futility. But I will list areas I think the team could improve either through the draft or free agency. Today I’ll be looking at the Quarterback, Running back, Wide Receiver, and Tight End positions.