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Ben Baby
Cincinnati – During his car washing in the media of the Super Bowl week, the field marshal of the Cincinnati Bengals, Joe Burrow, was perplexed for the teammates to receive a payment and taken to the usual suspects: the wide receptors Tee Higgins and Ja’mar Chase, and the defensive wing Trey Hendrickson.
Then he slid another name in the mixture: Mike G.
That was the name used for the closed wing of the Bengals, Mike Gesicki.
Gesicki is the last closed wing of the Bengals to sign with the team in a one -year contract. After a productive season in Cincinnati, 65 captures, 665 yards and 2 touchdowns, it is ready to enter the free agency. This is usually when players are charged with great contracts with other teams. But if the Bengals have the money to bring it back, that could be a underestimated but remarkable victory.
“That guy was very valuable for us all year, and a guy who, in my opinion, we need to bring back,” Burrow said on January 4 after the final game of the season.
Cincinnati received a total value in the 1 -year agreement worth $ 2.5 million that Gesicki signed the last low season. The seventh year Penn State player ended tenth among all wings closed last season in reception yards with its highest total since 2021.
But it is difficult to look at Gesicki’s value based on pure production. In some crimes, the closed wing is one of the main objectives for a quarterback. The last years in Cincinnati, that position has been a complementary piece that surrounds Chase and Higgins, one of the most dynamic receptor matches in the league.
However, team -based metrics tell a different story. Last season, the Bengals finished eighth in the NFL at points per trip. And Gesicki played a key role for a team that started the year in an unknown territory.
During the previous four years, which dates back to when the Bengals wrote to Chase, Cincinnati’s open receptors had very defined roles, with veteran Tyler Boyd aligned exclusively in the slot. But after Boyd was not signed in the free agency, the Bengals had more offensive flexibility. That meant putting persecution at various points throughout the formation and also using more sets with two wings closed.
Gesicki enter. While it is officially a closed wing, it was not officially served as the number 3 open receiver. And with the teams paying so much attention to Chase and Higgins, the Bengals used Gesicki to exploit the confrontations at the right time.
During the season, the offensive coordinator Dan pitcher said that Gesicki is built differently compared to other closed wings that the Bengals have had. Among the four closed wings, the Bengals have presented more recently, Gesicki is higher than the other four (6 feet 6) and weighed only three pounds less (247) when measured in the combination. But it also had a much higher vertical leap (41.5 inches) and exceeded the rest in all speed and agility exercises (4.54 seconds on the 40 -yard board, 6.76 seconds in the drill of three cones).
As pitcher pointed out in December, Gesicki puts the defenses in a difficult place. But perhaps the most important thing has developed a very strong relationship with Burrow.
“There is only great confidence that has been established with Joe that Mike will win in individual situations,” said pitcher. “That sounds simple, but, man, he has really trusted a guy to do that, and then he will make difficult catches.”
Since Burrow was recruited with selection number 1 in 2020, Cincinnati has made marginal investments in the closed wing position. According to Overthecap.com data, Cincinnati has paid closed wings approximately $ 6.4 million in guaranteed money. That is, with much, the lowest of the League. To put that in perspective, two previous closed wings of the Bengals, CJ Uzomah (2015-21) and Hayden Hurst (2022), earned $ 28 million in guaranteed money in their first Bengals contracts.
If Gesicki has a market similar to those who have turned 1 year periods with Cincinnati in large days of payment, that could make it sign again for the Bengals. Cincinnati already faces great decisions about three main players: Chase, Higgins and Hendrickson.
But with regard to Burrow, Mike G. It also deserves his money.
