The Bengals are expected to make a run at former Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall, according to Yahoo! Sports' Michael Silver.
Expect the Bengals to make a run at Rashard Mendenhall
— Michael Silver (@MikeSilver) March 12, 2013
Mendenhall, an unrestricted free agent, has carried the ball 864 times for 3,549 yards and 29 touchdowns. He only played in six games in 2012 and was either suspended or inactive through some of the season and only carried the ball 17 times over the team's last two games of the season, one of which was against the Bengals.
In his career with the Steelers, Mendenhall has scored five touchdowns against the Bengals, four of which came against them in 2011. Mendenhall is a powerful runner with the ability to move the pile and carry the ball between the tackles but he also has the speed to outrun the defense if he gets beyond the front seven or gets in space.
The Steelers aren't in the position to re-sign Mendenhall, even if they wanted to, because of their salary cap situation. The Bengals have the most space under the cap and could easily afford Mendenhall if they wanted. They have also been rumored to be interested in free agent backs Reggie Bush, Beanie Wells and Steven Jackson.
They have also been rumored to want a complement to BenJarvus Green-Ellis in their backfield as well and there has been speculation that they will draft a running back as well.