Bengals expected to cut former first-round pick Trae Waynes

It would be difficult to quibble with that assessment. Waynes missed the entire 2020 season with a pectoral injury, and he ultimately played in just five regular season games in 2021 due to a hamstring ailment. Although he appeared in all four of the Bengals’ postseason contests, he saw just 13 total snaps, and all of them came on special teams.

The reigning AFC champs are in a pretty good place in terms of the salary cap. As Morrison writes in a separate piece, Cincinnati should have upwards of $70M in cap space this offseason, including the $10.9M the club will realize from the Waynes release. Of course, a good chunk of that money is likely to be invested in an offensive line that yielded a whopping 70 sacks throughout the regular season and playoffs.

But some of it will need to be reinvested into the secondary as well. In addition to a franchise tag or extension for safety Jessie Bates, the Bengals will need to sign a No. 2 corner. Indeed, other than Waynes, Chidobe Awuzie and Mike Hilton, no cornerback who played a snap in 2021 is under contract for 2022.

For his part, Waynes will likely need to settle for a veteran minimum deal somewhere. His contract with the Bengals was inflated due to the premium that teams often have to pay for cornerbacks in free agency, as his 3+ years as a starter with the Vikings were solid enough, but never spectacular. Couple that with his recent injury history, and it stands to reason that he will be looking for a prove-it contract in 2022.