Bengals training camp observations: The impact of the improved offensive line

On third-and-1 from midfield in the last two minutes of the Super Bowl, the Cincinnati Bengals had Samaje Perine run the ball and try to fight for the first down. The Los Angeles Rams defensive line powered through the Bengals’ blockers, Perine was tackled behind the line of scrimmage, and one play later the game was over.

For three years, the Bengals tried to patch together an offensive line with mid-round draft picks and low-cost free agents on one-year deals. On that play, the Bengals had an offensive line grouping that had only played together for two months.

But what if the Bengals had the experience and the talent on the offensive line to open up enough room for Perine? The Bengals now have that with a group of five players who the Bengals made big investments in and a group of players who are all under contract for at least the next two seasons.

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As the Bengals report to training camp, the coaching staff is planning for the offensive line to become one of the strengths of the team.

“The lines that play together (that) have most of the same five guys for three or four seasons are always going to play better,” Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan said. “The types of guys we brought in, the mentality, their work ethic will allow that to happen at a pretty quick rate."

During the offseason, the Bengals signed right guard Alex Cappa to a four-year deal, center Ted Karras to a three-year deal and right tackle La’el Collins to a three-year deal. Collins is currently on the nonfootball injury list with a back injury, but Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said Collins will be ready for the start of the season.

Second-year left guard Jackson Carman is under contract for three more years. Left tackle Jonah Williams’ contract expires after the 2023 season, but the Bengals are interested in giving a contract extension to the young left tackle.

For the first time since the early-2010s, the Bengals have a young offensive line that’s going to grow together.

“Offensive line is a repetition position,” Karras said. “We’re going to communicate. We’ll see how well we work together. We don’t want bad reps, either. We want consistent performance and a general attitude of coming in and getting our job done.”

“It’s not just learning the system, but learning how to work with each other,” said Cappa, who added that he’s feeling “fantastic” after core muscle surgery in the offseason. “It’s about how we’re going to talk to each other to get to the same page. It takes reps, communication and time.”

For the first time in a long time, the Bengals coaching staff views the offensive line as a strength. As a result, Taylor and Callahan get to add new elements to the offense that they couldn’t afford to try last season when their biggest concern was protecting Joe Burrow.

Last year, the Bengals’ offense was too reliant on explosive plays. During the second half of the year, the offense most often stalled in the red zone or on third and short plays. Just like on the Perine play on third down in the Super Bowl, the offensive line couldn’t win enough one-on-one matchups on the plays that took place in smaller windows.

“We definitely had drives that stalled because of our inability to get a yard,” Callahan said. “And that's frustrating because that means we were relatively efficient on first and second down. We were in great position to convert, which is what we always try to do, and now all of a sudden, we don't get a chance to convert and we’ve got to go off the field because we couldn't get a yard. And that's frustrating on a lot of levels.”

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Callahan sees the improved offensive line making the biggest difference in the run game. Last year, according to Callahan, running back Joe Mixon was one of the most contacted running backs at the line of scrimmage. Mixon still had the best year of his career and ranked third in the NFL in rushing, but there’s obviously room to take yet another step forward when there’s more room to run.

“We got athletic (linemen), we got tough guys, and I think those improvements are going to help,” Callahan said. “If we can get Joe into the second level a little cleaner, I think that you're gonna see an uptick, probably in our ability to be efficient in the run game.”

The Bengals’ offense was still one of the best in the NFL in 2021. But with the improvements on the line, Taylor gets a chance to be more creative as a play caller. More snaps with Ja’Marr Chase in the slot, more aggressive passes down the middle of the field and more imaginative rushing plays are all on the table.

“As the offensive line goes, it allows you to do a lot of different things and put stress on the defense in run game, pass game, the protections can be solidified,” Taylor said. “So we just as a unit want to continue to make steps, so the line's a big part of that. We expect them to continue to improve their play, just like we do all the positions. We think we've got a good group up front to be able to do that for us.”

Callahan is especially interested to see what the Bengals can do in the play-action passing game. The biggest difference between the Bengals’ and Rams’ offenses last year was that the Bengals took most of their shots down the field out of shotgun formation on go routes down the sidelines, while the Rams used the under-center play action game to get their receivers open down the field.

Even though Burrow connected with Tee Higgins on an under-center play-action pass to start the third quarter of the Super Bowl with a touchdown, the Bengals didn’t have enough confidence to try that again later in the game.

With Cappa, Karras and Collins, the Bengals plan to give Burrow even more opportunities to take shots down the field.

“Certainly (the line) helps the play action pass, and we're not just getting teed off on,” Callahan said. “I think there's going to be a lot of things that we can do if we feel like our protection can hold up.”

Around the NFL, the biggest criticism of the Bengals’ offense last season was that it could be predictable, especially in the red-zone and short-yardage situations. When the Bengals needed a yard in the run game, they’d bring in an extra offensive lineman. On snaps where Burrow lined up under center, the Bengals almost always ran the ball. On snaps where Burrow lined up in shotgun formation, defenses expected the quick passing game.

With Cappa, Karras and Collins, the Bengals’ offense can look completely different.

“We got a serious offensive line,” Karras said. “We’ve got a lot of serious, good players. Our goal is to play up to our potential, which is very, very high.”

Observations from the Bengals practice Wednesday

• With the exception of Joe Burrow (appendicitis) and Jessie Bates (hasn’t signed the franchise tag), every Bengals player who’s not on the physically unable to perform list was a part of practice. Tee Higgins (shoulder), Logan Wilson (shoulder), Joseph Ossai (knee) and Cappa were all limited in practice after missing time in OTAs.

• Right tackle La’el Collins is on the non-football injured list with a back injury, and he worked on the exercise bike and watched the rest of practice. Safety Brandon Wilson (knee), linebacker Joe Bachie (knee) and defensive end Khalid Kareem remain out.

• Running back Elijah Holyfield, likely competing for a spot on the practice squad, was carted off the field with an apparent leg injury. He fell while making a cut out of the backfield in 11 on 11 drills.

• Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo has said that cornerback Eli Apple is established as a starter “until someone shows me that they’re better.” Apple took every first-team rep in the first practice at camp and is the definite favorite to begin the year as a starter.

• Second-round pick Cam Taylor-Britt made a strong first impression with the second team. In his first practice, he perfectly guarded a go-route down the right sideline, leapt at the right time and knocked down a deep throw down the field.

• Wide receiver Stanley Morgan Jr. is known for being one of the Bengals’ best special teamers, but he made some of the best highlight catches of the day on Wednesday. He made a physical catch in a tight window on a comeback route versus cornerback Tre Flowers. He reeled in a catch on the run over the middle on a bootleg play-action pass by quarterback Brandon Allen. And he made a leaping catch on a slot fade, beating the Bengals' first-team defensive backs with his speed down the sideline. The Bengals are looking for a player to step forward as the No. 4 wide receiver on the depth chart behind Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Tyler Boyd. Morgan Jr. has been given the chance to step forward into that role.

• The Bengals ran a lot of designed plays on Wednesday for starting tight end Hayden Hurst, who signed a one-year deal with the Bengals in free agency. Hurst’s size, his quick ability to create separation and his physicality as a route runner gives the Bengals a new element on offense.

• Carman enters training camp as the favorite to start the season at left guard, but the coaches are still going to make it a competition during camp. Hakeem Adenij, who started at right guard during the second half of last season, is currently viewed as ahead of rookie Cordell Volson on the depth chart.

• The coaching staff sees potential for Volson to develop. But Volson’s limited experience at offensive guard and the fact that he played FCS football at North Dakota State means that he likely won’t be a Week 1 starter. Volson is highly regarded by Bengals offensive line coach Frank Pollack because of his physicality and work ethic, but Volson will have to make a lot of quick progress and play at a very high level in the preseason to become an immediate starter.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Bengals training camp: How the offensive line has improved