The Cincinnati Bengals’ clear objective this offseason is to improve one of the worst defenses in the NFL last season. That doesn’t mean that they don’t have any needs on the offensive side. The list gets even longer when you look at them needing younger players at certain positions to develop.
To add to the list of quarterbacks they’ve checked out this offseason, they had a formal meeting with Texas Tech quarterback Behren Morton.
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Morton projects to be a mid-to-late pick in the NFL Draft. He has plenty of good qualities, but the biggest issue he faces is his arm strength not being at what many consider an NFL level.
Still, Morton is incredibly smart. It’s a matter of just making better decisions more consistently and going through his progression.
One of the sneakiest areas of need is at the quarterback position. Previously, Jake Browning seemed like a home run backup to have behind Joe Burrow after leading the team to several wins in his absence and overall performing fairly well. However, he struggled in 2025 when asked to fill in again. To the point, the team decided to trade a fifth-round selection for Joe Flacco to take his place.
While Cincinnati retained Flacco, he is 41-years-old. An obvious plan would be to add a young quarterback to the mix to develop a year or two as a practice squad quarterback to eventually take Flacco’s place if he can find a starting job or retires. They have looked at several other quarterbacks in the same range, like Rutgers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis and Arkansas quarterback Taylor Green.
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If Morton falls enough in the draft, he certainly fits that mold for the Bengals.
