Lack of experience, and consistency is a major question in the running back room of the Cincinnati Bengals. The Cincinnati Bengals have three guys in the backfield with only 590 carries between them. Zack Moss, Chase Brown, and Trayveon Williams have big shoes to fill with long-time Bengal Joe Mixon being traded to the Houston Texans during the offseason. Will the backfield be able to produce numbers similar to that of Mixon? Can they be better…or will they be worse?
The Free Agency Addition
Whether you love him or hate him; Zack Moss has been consistent when given an opportunity with the football. He boasts a career 4.3 yards-per-carry and 7.0 yards-per-reception. Moss is coming off a career-best season with the Indianapolis Colts. A season that saw him rush 183 times for 794 yards and 5 rushing touchdowns while adding 27 catches for 192 more yards and 2 more touchdowns. Moss turned his 210 touches into 986 all-purpose yards and 7 total touchdowns.
Having not played a full season in his career, Moss is going into his year six campaign with high hopes and expectations. This season is shaping up to look like Moss may have his first real shot at being the lead running back for the season.
Can he stay healthy enough to be “the guy?” Only time will tell. By having a good yard-per-carry rate for his career (4.3), Moss should be just fine behind this offensive line. An offensive line that could be the best the Cincinnati Bengals have had over the past 10 seasons.
The Speedster
Second-year Running Back Chase Brown is the next option in the Bengals backfield. The Fighting Illini alum didn’t get much run last season playing behind Joe Mixon, only seeing 44 rushing attempts during his rookie season. Although he did show some flashes when he did get his chance, averaging 4.1 yards-per-carry, and 11.1 yards-per-reception in 2023 gave fans a glimpse of what type of player Brown could be.
At the 2023 NFL Combine, Brown recorded the fifth-fastest 40-yard dash time by a running back with a 4.43. Now that number isn’t going to blow you away, but in 2023 Chase Brown had the second fastest ball carrier speed of the entire season as tracked by NFL Next Gen Stats at 22.05 miles per hour.
This season brings a great opportunity for Brown to showcase himself in an offense that passes the ball to the running back quite a few times each week. With his speed with the ball, he has the potential to be a very good change-of-pace back for the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Cincinnati Bengals Vet
Another year begins with Trayveon Williams as the third running back on the Cincinnati Bengals depth chart. Never really given a large role in the offense, Williams has yet to break out for Cincinnati. Although he hasn’t had a breakthrough into the starting lineup, Williams averaged 5.0 YPC throughout his career. Given a larger role in the offense, would he be able to make an impact or is he destined to just be a pass blocker and special teamer?
Final Thoughts
The Cincinnati Bengals are entering a season with Super Bowl expectations. It’s going to be exciting to see how Cincinnati utilizes each of their running backs. All three of the guys listed above have things to prove, and with an improved offensive line, big things could be on the horizon for the Cincinnati Bengals.
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