Cincinnati Bengals upgrade o-line depth with Andrew Whitworth uncertain for opener
By Jason Marcum
The Cincinnati Bengal are in a bit of a quandary heading into their Week 1 matchup vs the Chicago Bears. They may have to face an elite Bears pass-rush without their best pass-blocking lineman, as Andrew Whitworth is expected to miss the is week as he continues to recover from offseason knee surgery.
In order to shore-up their offensive line depth, they’re reportedly on the verge of resigning longtime backup tackle Dennis Roland.
Re-signing Roland was critical for Week 1, as he can play both tackle spots, and provides depth in case Whitworth misses an extended amount of time.
Roland played in all 64 games in the last four seasons for the Bengals, starting 29 times although most of those starts came in 2009 and 2010. Roland initially signed onto the Bengals practice squad in 2008 and was eventually promoted to the team’s active roster later that year. Roland signed a one-year deal in March as an unrestricted free agent.
If Whitworth is in fact out, Anthony Collins will likely start in his place, and Roland will be the first tackle off the bench.