The Cincinnati Bengals surprised most with the active trip to free agency this offseason.
Turns out they surprised themselves too.
Let pro scouting director Steven Radicevic tell it, nabbing safety Vonn Bell off the market was an unexpected luxury after already spending so much.
“Bell was kind of a luxury,” Radicevic said, according to Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic. “We didn’t think we’d be able to get him.”
The writeup notes before the Bell signing the Bengals had already secured three of their preferred four before the veteran safety fell in their laps.
And talk about the best type of luxury. Bell, just 25 years old, put up a 62.8 PFF grade last year and 75.3 the year prior. Over all of four seasons, he’s put up seven forced fumbles, eight sacks and 80-plus tackles in each campaign.
Part of the reason Bell is such a smooth luxury add is because of the insurance he provides against Shawn Williams. While Williams is a must-have locker room presence, he played hurt last year on the way to a 54.4 PFF grade (71.6 in 2018) and is now 29 years old.
The more quality options to pair with Jessie Bates and a longer list of options and versatility in subpackages is nothing but a good thing.
Perhaps most notably, this luxury signing came at the mere cost of three years and $18 million. It’s not crushing the Bengals to fit it on the cap and it not only has a potential out after one season, it fully expires in the middle of Bell’s prime, positioning both sides for a re-up.
Call backing into Bell on the market after other big spending yet another sign of just how good this offseason has been for the Bengals.
