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At this point, it’s safe to say Carl Lawson is by far the team’s most important free agent this offseason.
While one could argue William Jackson is right there with Lawson because of the team’s problems keeping great corners on the roster, there just aren’t many players like Lawson in free agency.
Case in point, Gregg Rosenthal of NFL.com listing Lawson as the 14th-best free agent this year:
“Pass rush in a bottle. I can’t imagine why the Bengals would not tag Lawson, who finished fourth in pressures (64) and second in QB hits (24) among edge rushers, per PFF.”
Besides the front-facing numbers, Lawson also created more sacks for players around him than almost any player in the league last season.
So yes, Lawson is going to be expensive. But most teams would love to have a player like him and from a Bengals perspective…he was the only quality pass-rusher on the team last year.
Losing Lawson would be, in a word, devastating. And given the ranking here, it’s clear the Bengals need to try and work something out with him before the market opens.
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