Nearly two weeks ago, the Bengals invited Rod Hood for a visit which apparently included the other professional football team in Ohio. On Monday, NFL.com's Steve Wyche writes, Hood will visit the Detroit Lions. Does that mean the Bengals, while intrigued, aren't interested? Are David Jones and rookie Morgan Trent possessing enough talent and skill that makes signing Hood a pointless act of parallel promotion?
As it stands, the Bengals have seven cornerbacks under contract (including the unsigned Trent). After first-round draft picks Leon Hall and Johnathan Joseph, the Bengals have a collection of cornerbacks that allows, if not forces, the Bengals to keep looking for improvement. Are they bad? No. Could the Bengals stand to do better? Probably. Is there anyone else out there that they could sign to improve the position? With most of the better players signed and sealed, that's unlikely. However, you have to believe they were intrigued with Hood for a reason.
So we have what we have right now are David Jones, Simeon Castille, Geoffrey Pope, Rico Murray and the rookie Trent.
If Hall and Joseph remain healthy throughout the season, our collection of cornerbacks aren't bad. They're backups. If injury takes our starters down, then our talent level, or lack thereof, at cornerback, will be highly extenuated and exposed. Jones had flashes, but we need consistency. With that said, the Bengals were one of the best when limiting opponents to under 20-yard passes. However, nearly a fifth of those passes went for 40 yards or more, which didn't rank as favorably.
| NFL Rank | AFC Rank | ||
| 20+ Yard Passes Allowed | 33 | t-2nd | t-2nd |
| 40+ Yard Passes Allowed | 7 | t-13th | t-9th |
The big play can be troublesome, and the Bengals still need to find a way to control the deep pass. I also grant that playing the deep pass has as much to do with safeties and rushing the quarterback as it does with corners. However, we're focusing on corners for the time being.
As it stands, there's still no rumor or word that the Bengals have offered Hood a contract. And if they did, Hood could be making a tour for himself to find the best situation and contract for himself. With all that said, knowing what you know now, how do you feel about the Bengals ability to stop the big pass play.