- Joe Burrow gains a much-improved offensive line and defense: The Cincinnati Bengals‘ entire offensive line and top players on defense all played before Burrow joined the team.
- The defense is built around the Bengals’ dominant 2010s core: Geno Atkins, Carlos Dunlap, Vontaze Burfict, Adam Jones and Reggie Nelson headline a unit that powered Cincinnati’s most successful stretch of the PFF era.
As part of PFF’s celebration of 20 years of NFL data, we’re building an All-Star team for every franchise, highlighting the best players at each position from the PFF era. This installment turns to the Cincinnati Bengals.
PFF’s database dates back to the 2006 NFL season, providing a unique lens for evaluating and comparing players across eras. More details on the methodology used to construct these teams are available at the bottom of the page.
Offense
The Bengals reached a Super Bowl in 2021 and followed it with an AFC Championship Game appearance the next season. Those remain the franchise’s only playoff victories during the PFF era. Despite that success, surprisingly few players from those teams made this roster. Instead, much of the offense comes from the Bengals teams of the early 2010s, with all the starters playing together in 2013.
The most competitive position was wide receiver. Ja’Marr Chase and A.J. Green were safe selections to make the team, with Tee Higgins narrowly beating Chad Johnson for the third receiver spot. While Johnson is the Bengals’ career leader in receiving yards, over half of his yards and half of his All-Pro and Pro Bowl appearances occurred before the PFF era.
Higgins has run more routes during the PFF era and also earned a higher receiving grade. The two are remarkably similar in both yards per reception and yards per route run, but Higgins holds a significant edge in touchdowns, leading 48 to 32. It’s worth noting that Tyler Boyd and T.J. Houshmandzadeh are two of the other most accomplished Bengals over the past 20 years, but they were further behind.
Defense
Half of the All-PFF defense includes players who played with Joe Burrow, but the best players at each position all played before the PFF era. Geno Atkins, Carlos Dunlap, Vontaze Burfict, Adam Jones and Reggie Nelson played four years together, and most of them played more seasons in Cincinnati.
There were a few close calls for the final few spots. At cornerback, Mike Hilton played 3,500 snaps to 3,478 by William Jackson III, and similarly had a slightly higher overall grade at 80.6 to 79.5. At defensive tackle, four players received more defensive snaps than DJ Reader, but Reader graded notably better than the rest of the group outside of Atkins.
It’s worth noting that Sam Hubbard wasn’t necessarily considered a Sam linebacker during his time in Cincinnati, but he often played like one. He lined up in a three-point stance on 1,587 plays, dropped into coverage more than the usual edge rusher at 294 times, and generally graded better in coverage than as a pass rusher.
Methodology
Selections were based on normalized PFF grades adjusted by season. To balance peak performance and longevity, only a player’s five best seasons with a franchise from 2006-25 were considered. Any season with an overall PFF grade below 60.0 was excluded, ensuring that strong years helped a player’s case while weaker seasons were not held against him. Postseason play was included, though all seasons were capped at a 16-game equivalent to maintain consistency across eras. At each position, the player with the highest score under this methodology earned the spot.
Each team consists of 12 offensive and 12 defensive players. Because 11 personnel and nickel defense were the league’s most common alignments over the past two decades, those personnel groupings served as the foundation for every roster. Teams received either a second tight end or a fullback, depending on whether they used more 12- or 21-personnel. Defensively, teams received either a third interior defender or a third linebacker depending on whether they primarily operated from a 3-4 or 4-3 front.
Players who logged significant snaps at multiple positions during their tenure with a franchise were eligible at either spot. In most cases, those players were assigned to the position where they provided the greatest value, though their versatility occasionally influenced the final roster construction.
Unlike some All-Pro teams that group offensive linemen by position type, these rosters were built according to where players actually lined up. If a team’s two best tackles both played exclusively on the left side, only the top left tackle was selected. One of the three wide receivers and one of the five defensive backs was also required to have significant slot experience. In a 4-3 defense, one linebacker needed experience at the Sam linebacker position, while in a 3-4 defense, one defensive tackle needed experience at nose tackle.
When multiple players are listed at the same position, the first name represents the top selection. Players designated as slot wide receiver, slot cornerback, nose tackle or Sam linebacker were selected specifically for those roles rather than as the third-best player within their broader position group.