Bengals’ receiving corps ranked third in AFC

In addition to Joe Burrow ascending to top-five quarterback status in the NFL, the Cincinnati Bengals receiving corps has also ascended to top-five status.

Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins have been among the NFL’s best wide receiver tandems in the NFL, and the Bengals are hoping younger receivers like Charlie Jones, Andrei Iosivas, and Jermaine Burton become added weapons to the Bengals receiving corps.

The free agent additions of Mike Gesicki and Zack Moss, plus the retention of Trenton Irwin, give the Bengals one of the best receiving corps in the NFL going into the 2024 Season.

Pro Football Focus agrees, recently ranking the Bengals’ receiving corps as the third-best in the AFC and ninth overall.

PFF’s Trevor Sikkema ranked the Bengals behind the Miami Dolphins and Houston Texans and ahead of the Tennessee Titans and Kansas City Chiefs.

Miami poses the speed combination of Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, while the Texans traded for Stefon Diggs and Joe Mixon in the offseason to join Nico Collins, Tank Dell, Noah Brown, and Dalton Schultz.

Tennessee’s receiving corps has been remade over the last three seasons after trading away AJ Brown and losing Corey Davis, and its corps now includes DeAndre Hopkins, former Bengals wide receiver Tyler Boyd, and Calvin Ridley. The Titans also replaced workhorse running back Derrick Henry with dual-threat running back Tony Pollard.

Kansas City revamped its receiving corps this offseason by signing former first round draft pick Marquise Brown and drafting Xavier Worthy in the first round this past draft. In addition, Travis Kelce is back for his 13th season with the Chiefs.

But Cincinnati’s receiving corps is just as good as any of these other four teams. Ja’Marr Chase is coming off a 100-catch season, and that’s without Joe Burrow in the final seven games of the regular season. Tee Higgins is a big play receiver waiting to happen on every play, and he will report to training camp on time after signing a $21.8 million franchise tag following the conclusion of OTA’s.

Mike Gesicki brings a veteran presence to the receiving corps and the tight end position, in particular. He caught 73 passes in 2021 and six touchdowns the year prior, and this should be his first full-time starting tight end role in the NFL.

There are multiple intriguing younger receivers on this Bengals roster. Jermaine Burton, a third-round rookie, had 798 yards and eight touchdowns in 2023 with Alabama while averaging 20.5 yards per catch. Andrei Iosivas caught four touchdowns as a rookie in 2023, while Charlie Jones scored the Bengals’ first touchdown of 2023 with an 81-yard punt return against the Ravens.

While the loss of Tyler Boyd hurts, the addition of Gesicki at tight end and Burton through the draft creates hope that this receiving corps will continue to be at the top of the AFC and the NFL. And if Chase and Higgins produce at the levels they’ve produced at to start their careers, the Bengals receiving corps will still keep opposing defensive coordinators up at night game planning to stop them. Correction, contain them.