Flowers and the Falcons agreed on a one-year contract Monday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Flowers will head to Atlanta after spending part of the 2021 season and the entirety of 2022 with the Bengals, recording 27 tackles with three pass deflections and an interception over 15 games with Cincinnati last year. The cornerback likely will operate as an option on the defensive side of the ball and on special teams with Atlanta in 2023.
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Bengals' Joseph Ossai: Expected to miss offseason program
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Ossai (shoulder) is expected to miss the Bengals' offseason program, Kelsey Conway of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
Ossai underwent surgery in February to address the torn labrum he sustained late in the 2022 regular season, and his rehab will keep him away from the field for Cincinnati's offseason activities this spring. The 23-year-old played in 16 games in 2022, recording 17 tackles, including 3.5 sacks, while deflecting a pass and recovering two fumbles.
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Bengals' DJ Turner: Cincinnati bound in second round
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The Bengals selected Turner in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft, 60th overall.
Turner looks like another strong pick for the Cincinnati defense, which added Myles Murphy as an overqualified DE3 in the first round. Now they add a standout corner prospect in Turner, who offers first-team viability as both an outside and slot cornerback. The Michigan product is smallish at 5-foot-11, 178 pounds, but his blazing 4.26 speed makes up for it.
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Bengals' Myles Murphy: Lands with Cincinnati at 28
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The Bengals selected Murphy in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, 28th overall.
This looks like a steal for Cincinnati. Murphy (6-foot-5, 268 pounds) is big for an edge rusher yet boasts sub-4.6 speed and plus reach, meaning he can play three downs and pose a threat both as a rusher and in run defense. Murphy led Clemson in sacks and tackles for loss going back three years, yet he doesn't turn 22 until January. Murphy's prospect profile is sterling from every angle.
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Bengals' Chidobe Awuzie: Rehab going well
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Awuzie (knee) believes that he will be ready to go for the 2023 campaign, Kelsey Conway of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
Awuzie tore his ACL in Week 8 of the 2022 season, missing the remainder of the Bengals' contests while recovering. The cornerback said that his rehab is going well, and his goal is to be ready for Week 1 of the upcoming campaign. With Eli Apple no longer a part of the team, Awuzie, when healthy, could operate in a more significant role in Cincinnati's secondary.
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Bengals' Chidobe Awuzie: No timetable for return
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Awuzie (knee) won't put a timeline on his return, Geoff Hobson of the team's official site reports.
Awuzie hopes to be ready for the start of the season after tearing his ACL during Cincinnati's Week 8 loss to Cleveland last year. The 2017 second-round pick does not want to rush his recovery but will look to ramp up his running program later this month, and if the 27-year-old can get healthy he should be poised for a bigger role this season following Eli Apple's departure.
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Bengals' Dax Hill: Could be in store for bigger role
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Hill could garner a major role in 2023 after Vonn Bell and Jessie Bates both left Cincinnati in free agency, Albert Breer of SI.com reports.
Hill was selected in the first round of the 2022 Draft but was relegated to a backup role as a rookie, totaling 16 tackles across 15 appearances. The Michigan product played over 12 percent of the Bengals' defensive snaps just once last year, totaling eight tackles (five solo) across 63 snaps in Week 15 versus Tampa Bay. If Hill is thrust into a starting role in 2023, his production in that game gives fantasy managers a good sense of what to expect from Hill on a game-by-game basis.
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Falcons' Jessie Bates: Headed to Atlanta
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Bates is in line to sign with the Falcons, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
The Bengals have lost both their starting safeties within the first few hours of the NFL's legal tampering period, seeing Bates depart for Atlanta shortly after Vonn Bell reached terms with the Panthers. The silver lining for Cincinnati is a big opportunity ahead for 2022 first-round pick Dax Hill, who played only 131 defensive snaps in 15 games as a rookie. Bates, meanwhile, immediately becomes one of the best players for an Atlanta defense that's been bad for the past half-decade. He has a good chance to rebound from last year's career-low 71 tackles, though big-play opportunities figure to be fewer and further between unless the Falcons improve considerably from 2022.
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Panthers' Vonn Bell: Links up with Carolina
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Bell and the Panthers reached agreement on a contract Monday, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports.
Bell's departure from Cincinnati could open up an every-down role for 2022 first-round pick Dax Hill, especially with the Bengals also in danger of losing fellow free agent Jessie Bates this spring. Bell had an unusual final season in Cincinnati, finishing with a career-low 77 tackles but making up for it with four interceptions. He'd picked off just two passes through his first six seasons despite making 67 starts between New Orleans and Cincinnati. The 28-year-old should stay on the IDP map in Carolina, likely trading some of those interceptions for more tackles, especially if the Panthers have another rough season and face a lot of rushing volume on defense.
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Bengals' Germaine Pratt: Staying in Cincinnati
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Pratt and the Bengals came to terms Monday on a three-year, $21 million contract, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
One of the Bengals' key free agents, Pratt is a great keep for the defense. He's started 54 games since being taken in the third round of the 2019 Draft. Pratt registered 99 tackles and a pair of interceptions across 15 starts last season.
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Bengals' Michael Thomas: Receives another extension
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The Bengals re-signed Thomas to a one-year extension Monday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Thomas is now set to remain in Cincinnati for at least one more season, when he'll serve in his 11th NFL campaign. The 32-year-old safety has primarily worked as a special-teams contributor throughout his two-year stint with the Bengals, and he'll likely do so again in 2023.
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Bengals' Jalen Davis: Signs new deal
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Davis re-signed with the Bengals on a two-year deal Thursday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Davis will remain in Cincinnati after spending the previous three seasons with the team. In 2022, he suited up 13 times, primarily contributing on special teams. The 27-year-old finished the year with two assisted tackles and a fumble recovery. Looking ahead to the coming season, the 27-year-old will reprise his role as a depth option in the Bengals' secondary.
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Bengals' Joe Bachie: Reups with Cincinnati
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Bachie agreed to a one-year deal with the Bengals on Thursday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Bachie appeared in 10 games last year after missing the start of the season due to a knee injury. The 25-year-old was a regular piece of Cincinnati's special-teams unit, recording 10 tackles along the way. He'll work to earn a regular spot among the team's linebacker rotation in 2023.
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Bengals' Joseph Ossai: Addresses lingering shoulder issue
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Ossai recently underwent surgery to address the torn labrum that he played through this past season, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Ossai is now slated to spend time recovering from the procedure, and he'll aim to be fully cleared by the time Cincinnati's offseason program commences.
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Bengals' Vonn Bell: Tallies 77 tackles in 2022
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Bell ended the 2022 regular season with 77 tackles, four interceptions, eight passes defended and one sack across 16 games. He added 17 tackles and one sack over the Bengals' three postseason contests.
Bell, who is one of the Bengals' team captains, will be a free agent this offseason but is likely to re-sign with the team. Assuming he does, the 28-year-old should reclaim a starting role at safety for the Bengals in 2023.
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Bengals' Eli Apple: No interceptions in 2022
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Apple concluded the 2022 regular season with 49 tackles, eight pass breakups and no interceptions, forced fumbles or fumble recoveries across 15 appearances. He added 18 stops and one pass breakup in the Bengals' three postseason contests.
As Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic notes, Apple is one of five defensive starters for the Bengals who are ticketed for free agency this offseason. After having failed to produce a turnover in 2022, Apple is unlikely to be deployed as a starter if he returns to the team in 2023, given the late-season emergence of rookie Cam Taylor-Britt along with the fact that Chidobe Awuzie (knee) should be back from ACL surgery. Even if Awuzie has a setback and isn't on track to be ready for Week 1 of the 2023 season, the team might turn elsewhere to find another starter opposite Taylor-Britt.
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Bengals' Germaine Pratt: Notches career-high 99 stops in '22
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Pratt finished the regular season with 99 tackles, two interceptions, a sack and 10 passes defended over 15 appearances. He added 20 tackles and three pass breakups across the Bengals' three postseason games.
According to Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic, Pratt expressed his frustration with getting subbed out for some third downs during this past Sunday's 23-20 loss to the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game, but the fourth-year linebacker still acknowledged that he hopes to return to Cincinnati in 2023. Pratt will become an unrestricted free agent in the spring.
Hill recorded a career-high 68 tackles and added three sacks and three fumble recoveries over 16 games during the regular season. The defensive tackle notched an additional nine tackles and one sack over the Bengals' three playoff games.
The Bengals have netted a big profit in acquiring Hill from the Giants in advance of the 2021 season. He played a career-high 785 defensive snaps in 2022 and will remain a starting tackle for the Bengals as he heads into the second season of a three-year, $30 million deal in 2023.
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Bengals' Jessie Bates: Records four picks in fifth season
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Bates finished the regular season with a career-low 71 tackles and a career-high four interceptions in 16 appearances. He added 20 tackles in the Bengals' three postseason contests.
Bates was playing under the franchise tag for his fifth NFL season after he and the Bengals tried but failed to come to a long-term contract agreement. He hasn't completely closed the door on returning in 2023, but Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic suggests Bates is unlikely to be retained. The Bengals have an estimated $44 million in cap space available, but with extensions with quarterback Joe Burrow and wide receiver Tee Higgins likely viewed as greater priorities, Cincinnati may not have much money left over for Bates. Cincinnati already prepared for Bates' possible departure by selecting safety Dax Hill in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
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Bengals' Joseph Ossai: Getting MRI on knee
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Ossai is scheduled to get an MRI after his knee buckled late in Sunday's 23-20 AFC Championship Game loss to the Chiefs, Andrew Gillis of Cleveland.com reports.
To add insult to injury, Ossai also was called for a crucial penalty on the play, as his injury occurred while the defensive end was delivering a late hit out of bounds on scrambling quarterback Patrick Mahomes. The 15-yard penalty on Ossai got Kansas City within range for a game-winning 45-yard field goal on the following play. With Cincinnati's season over, Ossai will have plenty of rehab time if the MRI discovers any damage to the knee.
