Goodnews: Bengals Sign former favourite star after the NFL Draft
After the NFL Draft, the Cincinnati Bengals finally bolstered their running back depth by signing former Michigan State starter and Oklahoma State transfer Elijah Collins.
The story was first reported on April 27 by Ryan Fowler of Bleacher Report; however, KPRC2 NFL insider Aaron Wilson later confirmed it. with a financial remark included.
“A league source says that [running back] Elijah Collins’ contract with the Bengals includes [an] $8,000 signing bonus,” Wilson was told. To lock down the 6-foot ball carrier in Cincinnati, add a little honey.
After a redshirt season, Collins made his debut as a rookie starter at Michigan State in 2019. That season, he amassed over 1,000 scrimmage yards, 988 of which came on the ground (4.5 yards per carry). That year, Collins added five touchdowns to the Spartans’ tally.
Sadly, that was not how things ended out.
Elijah Collins, a UDFA running back with the Bengals, struggled with opportunities and injuries following his rookie season.
Collins was passed over in the draft for a reason. Early in his undergraduate career, he displayed potential, but later on, whether because of an injury or decreased efficacy, there was a lack of output.
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Collins had a disappointing sophomore season after his spectacular year as a rookie. Throughout seven games and zero touchdowns, the Michigan State playmaker’s yards per carry average fell to a career-worst 2.2 YPC in 2020. He also gained 124 scrimmage yards.
Then, in 2021, Collins was hindered by an injury. That season, the ball carrier missed five games but returned to play in seven. Although he had a career-high 5.7 yards per carry average and one receiving score this time, his overall productivity was still lower due to less opportunities.
Collins did not record more than 50 carries in a season until 2022, when he recorded 70, following his 222 carries in 2019. The Spartan demonstrated his ability to handle the load during a comeback campaign by adding 4.5 yards per run and amassing over 400 scrimmage yards.
After that, Collins transferred to Oklahoma State, where his prospects were once more diminished. Despite this, he consistently competed in the yards per run category, achieving 4.5 yards per carry or higher in all but 2020 of the years.
That piece of consistency might have been what prompted the Bengals to investigate.
Wilson claims Collins’ 40-yard sprint time at the Oklahoma State pro day was 4.51 seconds. A 38-inch vertical, a 10-foot-5 broad jump, a 4.25-second shuttle, a 7.10-second three-cone drill, and sixteen bench press repetitions were also recorded by the RB.
Bengals RB Room Enters Zack Moss-Led Era Following Joe Mixon
With the departure of longtime Bengals team leader Joe Mixon in 2024, Zack Moss was brought in as the team’s expected starter.
With Collins absent as the newcomer, the room behind Moss is the same as it was the previous year.
Chase Brown, a fifth-round pick in 2023, is starting his second season in the league. The Illinois graduate saw 44 ground calls in his first season, totaling 179 yards and a YPC of slightly over four yards per run.
Chris Evans, a 2021 sixth-round pick, is still a member of the team. After finishing the season with 77 rushing yards and 151 receiving yards, his usage has drastically decreased.
Trayveon Williams, a former sixth-round pick who has never tallied more than 157 rushing yards in a season, is now the group’s veteran.
It goes without saying that Collins has room to push for a roster spot in this team. September’s depth chart should be led by Moss and Brown, but there may be competition for the RB3 spot during training camp.
Although it won’t be simple to dislodge staff favorites, a successful summer might push Cincinnati to make some tough choices.
