The Cincinnati Bengals enter the offseason with droves of needs and questions requiring answers.
One of the bigger pertains to the defensive line, which struggled to see non-Trey Hendrickson names create pressure before DJ Reader — now a free agent– suffered a brutal season-ending injury.
For Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay, the answer might reside in striking up a trade for future Hall of Famer Aaron Donald. In a proposed trade, the Bengals send the Los Angeles Rams first and third-round picks in the 2024 draft:
Donald racked up 53 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, eight sacks and 31 pressures en route to his eighth All-Pro nod this past season. He earned a sterling 90.9 grade from Pro Football Focus for those efforts, which was his 10th straight year of notching a grade 90 or above.
The Bengals aren’t likely to cough up any draft assets, let alone two top-80 picks during this key offseason.
Still, Donald finishing his career with the Bengals would undoubtedly provide a boost to a defense that consistently needs to find ways to stop Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes, among others.
Donald’s career seems to be on a year-by-year basis now, so if the Rams appear to be on a downswing, maybe he finds a way to a contender, sure. And this is indeed the type of move that could help prevent the budding Chiefs dynasty from expanding.
But for the Bengals, most big splashes like this are no-fly zones for the sheer capital sacrificed in order to make them happen.
