INDIANAPOLIS — Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo made it clear he has no questions about whether Dax Hill can play. But there are some internal questions about where.
The team’s 2022 first-round pick, Hill had a rough first season as a starting safety after essentially redshirting his rookie year due to the presence of veterans Jessie Bates and Vonn Bell.
Should the Cincinnati Bengals Move Dax Hill to Cornerback?
The Bengals drafted Hill with the succession plan in mind, but he and the rest of the youth in the secondary — 2022 second-round pick Cam Taylor-Britt, 2023 second-round pick DJ Turner II, and 2023 third-round pick Jordan Battle — were repeatedly exploited last season, resulting in Anarumo’s defense allowing 93 explosive passes plays, which were the fourth most in the league.
Is keeping Hill at safety and letting him build chemistry with Battle the right move? Or would Hill, who has great speed and cover skills, be better suited to play corner?
“We’re still looking at everything. We look at not just Dax but everybody last year,” Anarumo said. “When you have a year where it wasn’t quite up to standard, I think it’s something you evaluate – is this guy going to be better here or there.”
“He’s got to be good at one thing,” Anarumo added. “And that’s what we’re working on now is being good at one thing.”
Anarumo emphasized the point that the question about moving Hill isn’t based on the belief that he can’t play safety.
It’s rooted instead in wondering if he could be even better at a different spot.
“He’s still a young player in a lot of regards. It was only his second year, and he played only a handful of snaps his first year,” Anarumo said. “So I think his development and his upside is still huge. Nobody is down on the guy at all. We just have to make sure he’s honed in and is able to do the things we’re asking him to do.”
#Texans WR Tank Dell was shaken up on this play after taking a shot by #Bengals DB Dax Hill.
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) November 12, 2023
Each question ripples into another. If the coaching staff thinks Hill would be better suited at corner, what does that mean for Taylor-Britt and/or Turner? They are the projected starters, with veteran Mike Hilton as the slot corner.
Anarumo, who coached defensive backs for seven seasons in the NFL before becoming the Bengals’ coordinator in 2019, said the baseline in today’s NFL is to have three corners capable of starting out wide.
“You have to have three at the very minimum,” he said. “(Cornerbacks coach Chuck Burks) has done a good job developing that group. DJ Ivey (the team’s 2023 seventh-round pick) had to come in for snaps and unfortunately got hurt, but the first play he’s out there — I think it was against Minnesota — they run a double move on him, and he’s on it like it was nothing. So I think you need three at minimum you can look at as starters, and then you kind of go from there.”
Does Anarumo think he already has three starting-caliber corners on the roster?
“I think we do.”
Whether Hill is one of them will be answered in the coming months, and it will be based on internal discussions and external acquisitions, whether it be in the draft or free agency.
The Bengals signed Nick Scott in free agency last year with the idea of him being a bridge starter. Battle crossed that bridge by November.
Anarumo wouldn’t rule out acquiring another veteran safety this offseason, whether it be to back up Hill and Battle or expedite Hill’s switch to corner.
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“That’s always a conversation that is ongoing,” Anarumo said. “As we know, that’s something that when things can go sideways a little bit, it usually starts back there with communication.
“The guys that have done it and have experience can always add to that. There’s a fine line with how it all fits. You start talking about veteran safeties, and oh, by the way, the third safety has to play a lot of special teams. It’s a balancing act. But everything is open and on the table right now.”
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