As fans of the Cleveland Browns begrudgingly set their sights on the future, their rivals in Southwest Ohio are fully committed to winning in 2026.
Browns GM Andrew Berry has received plenty of praise for his offseason work to completely overhaul the offensive line and add more young talent at wide receiver. But no team in the AFC North attacked their needs as aggressively as the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Bengals ranked 29th in total EPA (expected points added) during the 2025 season. With Joe Burrow back healthy and his supporting cast largely unchanged, outside of some movement along the offensive line, many believe an improved defense could catapult the Bengals back to Super Bowl contender status.
They certainly acted with conviction, especially with free agent additions Boye Mafe, Jonathan Allen, Bryan Cook, and Kyle Dugger. The Bengals’ boldest move, however, came ahead of April’s draft when they traded the No. 10 overall pick to the Giants in exchange for defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence.
While Lawrence has been one of the most dominant interior linemen in football over the years, it’s risky business for a team to swap a top-10 rookie prospect straight up for an eighth-year veteran. It’s fair to wonder how many prime years Lawrence has left entering his age-29 season, and data analyst Seth Walder highlighted that risk in his latest for ESPN on Tuesday.
“The move was both uncharacteristic and unwise,” he wrote. “Yes, Cincinnati needs to invest resources into its defense. But this was not the way to do it. Lawrence is a good player who has been elite in the past. But he is coming off a down season — just an 8.4% pass rush win rate and 0.5 sacks. There's also a big difference between sending the No. 10 pick and, say, a late first-rounder. And that's why this was too pricey a trade.”
Browns fans won't mind hearing this verdict on Cincinnati's biggest offseason move
The Browns and Bengals will enter the 2026 regular season on very different timelines. By this time next year, Cleveland should be taking the next step in its rebuild after stocking its roster with young talent in recent offseasons. If the Bengals fall flat again and miss the playoffs for the fourth straight year, they could be starting back at square one.
Three of the AFC North’s four teams changed coaches, including the Browns with Todd Monken. Cincinnati opted to run it back with Zac Taylor, but after the team’s aggressive offseason, he’ll enter 2026 firmly on the hot seat.
Similar to the Browns’ offensive line, the Bengals’ defensive line could feature all new starters outside of 2023 first-round pick Myles Murphy. They’ll be banking on Mafe taking off as more of a full-time edge rusher, along with hopeful bounce-back seasons for both Lawrence and Allen.
For Browns fans, it all comes back to the aforementioned timeline. Cleveland spent the No. 5 overall pick on Mason Graham in 2025 and are hoping to see major strides in Year 2. They’ve also assembled premium young talent at left tackle, wide receiver, edge, running back, tight end, and safety. They might still be the AFC North’s little brother entering 2026, but not for long.
The Bengals have a chance to justify sticking with their current regime and executing in win-now fashion. The Browns could have stubbornly done the same with one more season of Kevin Stefanski and Deshaun Watson.
The fan base is thankful they didn't and has been embracing this new direction. Time will tell if it results in a major long-term advantage over its intrastate rival, but the pieces are already in place.
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