So far during this free agency period, the Cincinnati Bengals’ focus has been chiefly on re-signing their own guys rather than bringing new players in. The biggest moves for them have all been extensions– Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins , B.J. Hill– while they’ve only brought in four free agents from other teams. These moves aren’t necessarily bad, but there are still a lot of holes to fill.
This strategy puts a lot of pressure on drafting — something the Bengals haven’t done consistently well in the 2020s so far. Not only that, but they’ll have to do so with a very limited selection of picks, only having six at the moment.
Granted, if they do end up fulfilling a couple of trade requests from the likes of Germaine Pratt and Trey Hendrickson, that number could go up. However, trading Hendrickson would do more harm than good as it would create yet another major crack in the team’s hull that the front office would have to patch up.
Either way, they have too few picks for all the holes on the roster, so they’ll have to be very careful in deciding which positions they will address. While some are obvious, such are defensive line or guard, others will be the subject of debate among Bengals fans for the next month. So, let’s add fuel to the fire and discuss one of these positions, and whether or not the Bengals should invest a draft pick in one. That position is running back.
Should the Cincinnati Bengals select a running back in the 2025 NFL Draft?
First, let’s analyze how the Bengals look at running back.
The emergence of Chase Brown last year helped soften the blow of long-time Bengal Joe Mixon’s departure from the team and the underwhelming nature of the Zack Moss signing.
In his first year as a starter– mind you he didn’t even get the majority of snaps until Week 6– Brown combined for over 1,300-plus scrimmage yards and 11 all-purpose touchdowns, all the while averaging 4.3 yards per carry.
So, that should make this cut and dry, right? They have Chase Brown, they shouldn’t draft a running back, easy. Well, things are hardly that plain and simple.
Most of the best offenses, with exceptions like the Philadelphia Eagles who have arguably the best running back in the league in Saquon Barkley, operate with a running back-by-committee mindset. That is, having multiple players splitting carries throughout the season. Not only does it allow for more versatility in an offense, but also reduces injuries. The Bengals should know this, they got a brief injury scare with Brown in the second-to-last game of the season against the Broncos.
So, even ignoring the benefits of splitting carries across two or three backs, how secure should Bengals fans feel if Chase Brown were to go down with injury again? They did sign Samaje Perine back from the Chiefs, but he hasn’t shown much since departing from Cincy to inspire confidence in fans if he had to step in for a few games.
As for Moss, signs are pointing to him being cut. Then you have Kendall Milton, who played six total snaps last year– all with the Bengals.
Besides Brown, there isn’t a lot to look at and get excited about here. So, seeing how they already signed a running back, chances are if they’re going to add one more player to this room, it’d be through the draft. Thankfully, the 2025 Draft Class is deep at the running back position. While superstars like Ashton Jeanty and Omarion Hampton headline it, potential lingers throughout.
The Bengals wouldn’t have to use a high-value Day 1 or 2 pick to get a promising player at the position. Since this running back class is as loaded as it is, prospects like Bhayshul Tuten, DJ Giddens, and Tahj Brooks are all projected to go in the 4th round or later by most. All of those players could come in and likely give Perine some competition for that RB2 spot on the depth chart.
So, for a room that needs a little more juice and upside outside of its feature player, and a draft class that is filled to the brim with good running back prospects, the Bengals should at least consider drafting a running back. Preferably, in the later rounds on Day 3.
