The Bengals would get a big boost to their pass rush in this scenario.
The Cincinnati Bengals’ pass rush is struggling. Only Trey Hendrickson is having real success.
Meanwhile, the team has more than its fair share of tight ends, with Mike Gesicki, Erick All, and Tanner McLachlan being added to a core that already included Drew Sample and Tanner Hudson.
ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano has a solution: the Bengals trade Hudson and a fourth round pick to the New York Jets for pass rush specialist Haason Reddick.
Here is why Graziano believes the deal “makes sense for both sides”:
One of the spots on the roster where the Jets could add some depth is tight end, and the Bengals have Mike Gesicki and Drew Sample playing ahead of Hudson and also drafted two tight ends in the most recent draft. Cincinnati could use more edge rush help alongside Trey Hendrickson and Sam Hubbard after posting the 10th-worst pass rush win rate in 2023 (37.9%). The pick probably evens out the value, and the Bengals have seemingly used some kind of Jedi mind trick to keep players productive when they’re unhappy in the final year of their contracts.
And he’s right that Cincinnati would be very happy to add Reddick, who is just 29 years old but already has 58 career sacks in seven years with the Arizona Cardinals, Carolina Panthers, and Philadelphia Eagles.
But the veteran edge rusher has not practiced or played for the Jets since being traded from the Eagles, as he continues to hold out for a new contract. So the Bengals would have to shell out a lot of money to get him on the field. This while they’re struggling to keep the star players already on the team.
Speaking of those star players, we talked about the latest on Ja’Marr Chase and whether Joe Burrow and the Bengals can overcome the distraction to get things in order against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs:
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