As teams are working through a more traditional off-season, preparation for the 2021 campaign is nearing the final stages. Organized team activities have wrapped up, minicamps are taking place, and players are finding their roles. Invariably, there are certain players coaches and fans look to in the biggest moments of the season. These three faces of the 2021 Cincinnati Bengals should prove to fulfill this kind of player for the team.
Faces of the 2021 Cincinnati Bengals
Joe Burrow
It should come as no surprise but Joe Burrow will inevitably be the most important player on the team in 2021. As he continues to rehab from reconstructive knee surgery, all eyes have been on number nine. His rookie campaign saw the young passer firing on all cylinders before his Week 10 injury. That said, the progress Bengals fans have heard about this off-season has developed quite the buzz.
Reports from inside the building point to Burrow having improved his arm strength dramatically this spring. Alongside several reasons to praise Burrow in 2020, the deep ball was the aspect of his game in need of the most improvement. Fans will be elated to see the second-year signal-caller was able to focus on fixing that element of his game while also rehabbing his knee back to 100 percent.
The organization has pinned the future of the team squarely on his shoulders and he appears ready for the challenge. The Bengals will go as Burrow goes this season. You would be hard-pressed to find anyone with a negative thing to say about Burrow as a teammate, leader, or football player. The focus of the 2021 season is primarily on his left knee and driving the ball downfield.
Jessie Bates III
Jessie Bates III will undoubtedly serve as the face of the 2021 Cincinnati Bengals defense. Coming off of a 2020 season that ended with him as Pro Football Focus’s top-graded safety, the defense won’t take a step forward without another solid year from Bates.
A quick scan of Bengals Twitter will make it very clear that Bates is a fan favorite. You likely wouldn’t find Bates on the NFL’s social media pages otherwise. He won’t be the guy that delivers the controversial quote on the Wednesday before the big matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers. In fact, you may not know who the guy is if you are not a devout Bengals fan. Teammates, coaches, and Cincinnati fans know exactly who Bates is, even if your television may not.
Trae Waynes‘s return and notable investments in Chidobe Awuzie and Mike Hilton will certainly prove important. Regardless of new faces, no player in the Bengals secondary is more important than Bates. “It’s cool to fly under the radar,” Bates has said about his lack of notoriety. If all goes well in the coming season, he may have a more difficult time keeping a low profile moving forward. If the 2021 Cincinnati Bengals defense does well, you can bet the house on Bates having numbers placing him at or near the top of all safeties in the league.
Ja’Marr Chase
Closing out the list is the player who can help Burrow nullify his deep-ball woes. Much has been made of the decision to draft Ja’Marr Chase over Penei Sewell. As such, plenty of focus surrounds Chase’s rookie campaign. The first-year wideout comes to the Queen City looking to continue the eye-popping highlight reel he began at L.S.U.
Throughout the history of the franchise, the Bengals have interestingly displayed a penchant for drafting franchise-legend-level receivers in years that end in one. In 2001, Cincinnati drafted Chad Johnson. One decade later in 2011, the team selected A.J. Green fourth overall. The careers of the aforementioned receivers obviously panned out pretty well for the team. Bengals fans hope 2021’s selection proves just as fruitful at the position.
If these three players shine in 2021, they can lead the charge toward national respect for Cincinnati. The faces of the 2021 Cincinnati Bengals will prove instrumental to the results fans see on the field during the year.
Main Photo: Embed from Getty Images
