Is the left side of the Cincinnati Bengals offensive line the key to the 2026 season?
John Sheeran breaks down why Orlando Brown Jr. and Dylan Fairchild could be the keys to the Bengals' success this season. With Joe Burrow leading one of the NFL's most explosive offenses, strong play from the left tackle and left guard positions will be critical to protecting the franchise quarterback, improving the run game, and helping Cincinnati compete for a championship.
Video Transcript
Remember, he was coming off of a season in 2024 where he suffered basically a broken knee, so we don't really know how healthy he was for the majority of the season.
And by the time that Brown was settling in at that point, Fairchild was able to settle in because Ted Karras was a rock for the majority of the season to his right, and when Orlando Brown Jr. to his left was playing at a more stable rate, that allowed Fairchild to just settle in between two very solid vets, and his job was made a lot easier because of that.
He was essentially flawless throughout the final six games of the season, and that is really promising for a rookie offensive lineman heading into a critical second year.
In general, I think this ranking of 15th in the NFL is fair for right now because the Bengals still have to prove that they are better in 2026.
But a lot of the conversation has been about, yeah, if the Bengals' defense is just average, then the Bengals have a really good chance of getting back to the playoffs and going far.
But I think in terms of how their roster is perceived, if the offensive line proves that the final seven games of last season is indicative of what this unit is going to be for the entirety of 2026, then I think this roster looks a lot better regardless of how much better the defense looks as well
