Stripes

He seems to have free agents excited about a 2-14 team. That's no small achievement.

I can't tell you whether or not he's going to grow into a quality HC, but let's remember that he's here because of his performance as a QB coach. His fit alongside Burrow ought to be relatively clean.

I tend to think the "most right" answer tends to be "BPA at a position of need". That is: don't shoehorn someone in within a narrow 1-2 position space, but also don't take a QB if you have Peyton Manning. For the Bengals, their needs are broad enough that the distinction from BPA is inherently limited anyway. At #33 at least, the only positions I would be bothered by beyond ridiculous STs stuff are TE, RB, QB (assuming Burrow), and maybe S with Vonn Bell aboard. I could even dig another DT given Geno's age and the uncertainty of any FA insertion.

I would not be excited by a TE selection, but I also don't think the Bengals have any good ones on the roster. Sample could develop I guess, but I won't hold my breath. Uzomah is barely decent. Another 2nd rounder would piss me off. 3rd round onward go for it.

Kirkpatrick had a weird career here. He looked like a straight-up bust for his first couple of seasons, then kinda found his way, and eventually ended up settling in at below average.

I'd initially chosen interior defensive line. DJ Reader makes that less crucial. I'm glad they agreed with me on the significance of that need though.

Yeah I was just ripping on Sample again. I’d be happy with Trautman 3rd round onward though.

I’m getting the impression that Taylor’s biggest strength was a weakness of Marvin’s: charisma. Obviously there’s more to coaching, but for the moment it’s refreshing.

I am personally hoping for a TE that only excels as a blocker. In theory.

I think they're just both at this point, and the variance is basically wherever Carl Lawson lines up.

Jessie Bates and Vonn Bell sounds like a top five safety tandem.

I'll be real: every time Zac Taylor said something like "I think that anyone who sees what we're doing here and what we're about would want to be a part of it" after 2-14, I snorted. But, here we are. The Bengals are having the loudest free agency period in the league.

Holy shit.

I also can't shake the worry over what will happen with one-year pickups when I can't be sure there will be a 2020 season. I admit I am clueless about how that would work.

I am generally incapable of feeling immense excitement about free agency given how often I have seen teams spend nothing and fail and other teams spend a lot and fail. It's very hard to judge. Still, I am pleased to see the Bengals so proactive. They have to at least try, and nobody could seriously suggest they aren't doing that.