Bengals may consider cutting Dre Kirkpatrick

The Cincinnati Bengals have already been one of the more active teams this offseason. Obviously with the No. 1 overall pick, all eyes are set on the long-term signal caller that the Bengals may bring in.

However, there may be movement at other positions coming in the near future. As a reminder, March 18 is the start of free agency, a period in which teams are doing all they can to improve while also cutting costs.

Well, for Cincinnati, their cornerbacks may come into question when looking to increase their cap room. That said, both Darqueze Dennard and Dre Kirkpatrick may see their time in Cincinnati up.

The Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr., in a recent column regarding the team’s post-combine talks, noted that the former first-round pick may be on his way out of the Queen City.

“We’ve likely seen the end of Darqueze Dennard’s time in Cincinnati with both sides focused in other directions. The Bengals would like to use the money saved on letting go of Dre Kirkpatrick to help fund a younger, high-quality replacement,” Dehner Jr. wrote.

Kirkpatrick being cut would save the Bengals $8 million in cap space. With the No. 33 overall pick, along with several others later in the draft, there ample opportunity for the Bengals to at least partially replace Kirkpatrick’s production.

However, if both Dennard and Kirkpatrick head elsewhere, the Bengals would be in trouble. They’d be without a starting-quality corner and likely won’t be adding a top-tier talent in the first-round of the upcoming draft.

If they don’t continue with Kirkpatrick’s contract, expect some activity from Cincinnati in free agency, potentially aiming for a top-tier cornerback like Chris Harris Jr., Logan Ryan or Byron Jones.

The 6-foot-2 Kirkpatrick played in just six games for Cincinnati in 2019.