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The future of Adam Jones in Cincinnati, as well as in the NFL, remains very murky following his recent arrest.
According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Bengals have yet to decide what they’ll do with their embattled cornerback. As expected, the team will wait for all of the details to come out, then make a decision on whether or not to keep Jones for 2017, or release him.
As bad as this arrest looks, not to mention video of Jones berating and threatening a police officer, the team is smart to wait until they have all of the facts before making a decision that will have a major impact on the franchise.
If Jones is cut, the Bengals could go into next season with no proven cornerbacks if Dre Kirkpatrick also leaves in free agency. That would leave Darqueze Dennard, William Jackson III, Joshua Shaw, and Keivarae Russell as the top corners on the roster.
Then again, if Jones is cut, that gives the Bengals more cap space with which they can re-sign Kirkpatrick and/or star guard Kevin Zeitler. It’s very likely at least one of those guys leaves for a big free agent deal elsewhere this offseason, but having an extra $6 million in cap space as a result of cutting Jones would certainly help re-sign one, if not both of them.
There’s really no question at this point; the Bengals need to cut Jones after his fourth arrest since joining the Bengals and 10th since joining the NFL. Having him back just sends a terrible message to the rest of the team.