Zac Taylor and the Cincinnati Bengals have much to do in the 2020 offseason if the team is to rebound from its two-win performance.
Taylor, in tandem with the front office, needs to address several notable contract situations, balance the cap space, use free agency and the draft as a means to improve and simply do it all well.
Here’s a sketch of a map the Bengals should follow.
Extend Joe Mixon
New York Jets At Cincinnati Bengals 12 1 2019
Just do it.
Look, extending running backs with big-money deals is one of the more polarizing things a team can do now. But this the Bengals, a team that usually takes care of its own anyway and this is the Bengals, a team that always seems to have droves of cap space.
Mixon will be 24 over the summer and it’s clear he’s one of the critical leaders in the locker room. He also happens to be one of the NFL’s best.
Will the Bengals regret a huge extension a few years down the line? Probably. But right now, why risk a holdout with the team’s best offensive weapon before drafting a passer at No. 1?