The Bengals made safety Dax Hill a first-round pick last year, but he didn’t have a well-defined role on their defense.
With veterans Jessie Bates and Vonn Bell on hand at safety, Hill was mostly limited to special teams outside of a couple of games when injuries at cornerback led the Bengals to give the rookie playing time at that position. Bates and Bell are both set for free agency this offseason, however, and it seems likely that the Bengals will be turning to Hill as a full-time starter in his second season.
Hill said this week that he’s looking forward to having a more defined role on defense.
“Your confidence builds as you get more reps and you hone in one position or at least knowing the specific job you’re doing,” Hill said, via Laurel Pfahler of the Dayton Daily News.
The changes at safety won’t be the only ones that the Bengals make this offseason and they’ll need Hill and other new starters to pick up where others left off in order to continue the team’s run of success into a third season.
