For years, decades even, the Cincinnati Bengals have searched and swung for an elite, versatile tight end. From first-round picks Jermaine Gresham and Tyler Eifert to solid developmental picks C.J. Uzomah and Tyler Kroft. Then the free-agent carousel of Hayden Hurst, Irv Smith and Mike Gesicki.
Each enjoyed their moments, but none quenched the thirst for a true impactful tight end capable of providing the ultimate versatility and doing everything at a high level.
Coach Zac Taylor and his staff believe they finally made it happen with fourth-round pick Erick All.
Not only are they saying as much as he’s ascended from an intriguing fourth-round pick to TE1 in four weeks, they are altering their offense because of it.
Over the last three years, only the Rams played in 11 personnel with three wide receivers more than Taylor. Now, with All, the Bengals rank fourth in the NFL in using two tight ends.
That’s almost solely due to the impact of All, whose snap count has increased from 24 percent in the opener to leading all tight ends with 60 percent in Carolina.
To explain the direct impact, look no further than an innocuous pass in the third quarter to Chase Brown in the flat Sunday. All drove Carolina corner Troy Hill 10 yards down the field as Brown slipped past him for an 11-yard gain.
“He executed his technique flawlessly,” offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher said. “He was within the legal zone where you can block a defender prior to the ball being caught. He locked him up and sustained the block— he probably would still be sustaining that block.”
Brown was looking for an oncoming defender before he realized that wasn’t necessary.
“Oh, I will just run behind Erick until I can’t,” Brown said. “That dude, not just that, go look at all his blocking reps. He’s a beast.”
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The Bengals have scored eight red zone touchdowns this season and All’s been a major part of the success in half of those. Twice his crack block coming in motion sprung the hole open for a run up the middle. On another, Brown ran off his back while matched up against Carolina linebacker Charles Harris and then in Kansas City he stymied George Karlaftis one-on-one in pass protection for 4.2 seconds while Joe Burrow waited for Andrei Iosivas to break free.
“When you have a player like that with a blend of athleticism, real strength when he puts his hands on people, the willingness to use that strength, the willingness to be violent when required, then the ability to run downfield and catch the ball,” Pitcher said, before deciding he needed to amend his statement. “I’ll say this: Maybe it goes beyond willing and it turns into eager — there’s an eagerness to be violent. That’s probably a better descriptor.”
His first career target came Week 2 in Kansas City and he’s caught all 12 of his targets for 82 yards.
He caught a 19-yard explosive play against the Chiefs, created first downs by chipping and shedding before breaking out in the route and even made Harris miss on a pass on the edge to gain a critical first down as the Bengals tried to run out the clock in Carolina.
Name an aspect of winning football a tight end can provide through four weeks and he’s done it.
“He deserves a lot of credit for putting himself in position this early in his career to play the kind of role he’s playing for us,” Pitcher said. “That’s the kind of offense we want to be. We aspire to be a system and a group of coaches that if you come in and show you know what you’re supposed to do and you can do it, you can play. And if you’re gonna put the work in and you’re gonna be trustworthy, you can play. And so that’s what we’re seeing from him right now.”
His presence also sets the Bengals up to be more physical in the AFC North starting this weekend, a trait they notably lacked while going 0-5 against the division in games that mattered last season. The shift to 12 personnel allows them to throw the first punch offensively rather than adhere to the finesse reputation Baltimore, Pittsburgh and Cleveland have exploited in recent years.
They can more effectively run the ball with authority or max protect when necessary to hold the line. Both of those methods have been catalysts for explosive plays and scores.
“When you have the ability to also expand in the passing game, that helps a lot of things when you’re on the field,” Taylor said. “Erick brings a lot to the table. He’s very humble in his approach. He wants to get better and he takes to coaching. In a lot of ways, he’s bright-eyed like any rookie would be and he doesn’t walk around like, ‘I made it.’ Quite the opposite, to be frank with you. It’s, ‘I’ve got to be better, there’s more to do.’”
They have plenty more for him over the next 13 games.
Brown making good on investment
The Bengals’ big free-agent splash in 2023 for left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. ended up being a bit of a dud. After making four straight Pro Bowls, Brown struggled at times in pass protection and left questions about expectations for him.
He came away unhappy with his Bengals’ debut season and mad at himself.
“Left a really funny taste in my mouth,” he said. “I put a lot of pressure on myself. This organization paid me a lot of money to come in here and do my job at a high level. It was really important to me not only to prove myself right, but prove this organization right.”
He stuck around Cincinnati all offseason and stayed in regular meetings with offensive line coach Frank Pollack to find answers to the problems he endured. Brown also watched prime Tyron Smith and Taylor Lewan tape searching for ideas. One solution to come out of the time was a tweak to his stance, tucking his outside leg further inside, allowing him to explode out more at the snap.
“It allows me to get into my set more smoothly,” Brown said, pointing out he had a groin injury last year that hindered his movement. “Now, being healthy, tweaking my stance, it allows me to be explosive, get into my set and be more frontal in front of the guy.”
Orlando Brown Jr. celebrates a Week 1 touchdown with running back Zack Moss. (Sam Greene / Imagn Images)
Brown had never changed his stance that dramatically but saw a difference in camp as he was tasked with regularly going up against Trey Hendrickson.
“Once I was able to use it and see how it worked against him,” Brown said, “I had a good feeling and understanding of the benefits of it.”
The benefits have resulted in what Pitcher dubbed “some of the best football of his career.”
That goes a long way to solidifying the future of the offensive line with Brown signed through 2026 at $16 million per year and first-round pick Amarius Mims opening eyes in early returns looking like a dominant right tackle of the future.
You can say the Bengals’ offensive line, specifically in pass protection, is one of the better units in the league. Bengals fans and Burrow have waited a long time to hear that.
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Bengals bank on health, not trades to fix D-line
There’s no question what the Bengals should look for as the trade deadline approaches next month. They need defensive linemen to shore up a pass rush and run defense that’s been among the worst in the NFL.
Don’t expect a trade anytime soon. That’s never been in the DNA of director of player personnel Duke Tobin and their front office. They’ve never used the deadline to add and even in prime opportunities to subtract like in 2019 when they were winless and able to unload veterans like A.J. Green and Geno Atkins, they passed.
There’s always a chance the perfect storm comes together, but the eyes will be on the development — and, more importantly, health — of the current players providing the solution.
An expected growth of Kris Jenkins Jr.’s role will bolster the interior rotation. Myles Murphy (knee) was activated to the 21-day window from injured reserve Wednesday and sounded ready to take on a nearly full workload if needed this weekend against the Ravens. Murphy said his get-off-the-ball explosion on the rehab field was at pre-injury levels.
Sheldon Rankins is still a week or two away from returning from his hamstring injury, but he’s the lone lineman not back onto the practice field.
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Third-round pick McKinnley Jackson went down with a knee injury Aug. 8 and while he might be healthy enough to come back in the next three weeks, don’t look for him to make an immediate impact. He only has three padded practices to his name and the staff will need to learn more about what level the rookie can play at beyond just being healthy.
Still, there’s an obvious belief that recent draft picks can be a large part of this solution and the future will hinge on draft picks coming through as well while trying to offset large contract hits on Burrow and, eventually, Ja’Marr Chase. Tobin will never be somebody looking to unload picks for a Band-Aid and it’s highly unlikely this defensive line problem will spawn a change of philosophy.
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(Top photo of Erick All: Ian Johnson / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
