One of the constant themes of this Cincinnati Bengals offseason, stressed here and otherwise, has been the changing of the playbook.
Specifically, the idea is that the Bengals want to go under center more often as opposed to the constant shotgun looks. That would make the offense more diverse, in turn making it harder for opponents to prep for and combat in real-time.
There’s a little more late-May confirmation of that too now, courtesy of the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Charlie Goldsmith:
The Bengals’ playbook has changed more this offseason than it has in any offseason since Burrow’s rookie year. In 2024, the Bengals are interested in lining up more under center, using the play action passing game more and marrying their run game, their screens and their drop back passing game more than they have over the last few years.
Personnel changes confirmed this shift without the team saying a word. Tyler Boyd is out and his slot duties will go to a mixture of big-bodied tight end Mike Gesicki and/or speedier receivers such as Charlie Jones or rookie Jermaine Burton — when the team isn’t putting Ja’Marr Chase there to create mismatches.
In the backfield, the plodding Joe Mixon gets swapped out for speedier backs, including a presumed bigger workload for the electric sophomore Chase Brown.
These changes felt inevitable after they seemed to be on the table one year ago before Joe Burrow’s calf injury, so for coordinator Dan Pitcher and Co., they have to hope it’s a case of better late than never.
