The Bengals finished 6-9-1 and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2010 with the offense ranking 24th with just 20.3 points per game, despite a fairly productive season between the 20-yard lines.
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However, Zampese said his rookie season is behind him. He’s ready for big improvements in Year 2.
“There were plenty of things that didn’t happen the way we wanted to and plenty of things that happened better than we thought, but those were all things that happened last year,” said Zampese, who replaced Hue Jackson upon his departure to become Cleveland’s head coach.
To start with, Zampese had his hands tied after losing two of his top three receivers to free agency and missing Tyler Eifert for half the season because of ankle and back injuries.
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This season, it seems he has a bigger arsenal available even with questions surrounding the health of Eifert, Giovani Bernard, whose 2016 season was cut short by an ACL tear, and first-round draft pick John Ross, who underwent offseason labrum surgery and has yet to get on the field.
At the receiver position, 2016 second-round pick Tyler Boyd emerged as a great third-down option as a rookie, and Zampese was especially impressed with sixth-round pick Cody Core’s evolution this spring. The Bengals have confidence in Ross once he gets into pads and also have Josh Malone joining the mix as a sixth-round selection.
C.J. Uzomah and Tyler Kroft earned valuable reps at tight end in Eifert’s absence, and second-round draft pick Joe Mixon adds depth at running back.
“We’ve got options and we’ve got good options, and a lot of things need to fit right as we go,” Zampese said. “We’ve got a lot of guys we’ve talked about, John Ross, Tyler Eifert, Giovani — guys that are coming back into the group. How soon they can get back in to do what they need to do for us to be successful determines all these other things.”
Though a big chunk of the skill positions are filled by players in just their first or second seasons, they are guys the Bengals saw enough potential in to use their top drafts picks in getting.
Now, Zampese just needs to get the most out of them and hope veterans like quarterback Andy Dalton and receiver Brandon LaFell can help push the young guys along.
“That’s what is supposed to happen,” Zampese said. “You’re supposed to add talent each year, and then you find out how to use that so you get the most out of them. It’s not about having a bunch of 10s if they play like 7s. It’s whatever you get. That’s what is important that you get all the guy has. I think we’ve got some really young pieces and we have to give them as much as they can handle and execute.”
Head coach Marvin Lewis said Zampese has what it takes to pull out that ability in his players. He showed that in how he brought Dalton along as a quarterback and molded him into one of the top passers in the league.
It’s just a matter of getting the other pieces working – this time behind a rebuilt offensive line after losing left tackle Andrew Whitworth and right guard Kevin Zeitler to free agency.
“The biggest thing as a coordinator is you go in with expectations that you’re going to be this, but you know what, you have to change and adapt,” Lewis said. “That’s the one thing Kenny has done a good job of is changing and adapting. He’s just going to have to continue. We’ve got some new people in different places and so forth this year, so he just needs to continue to pull out their ability and allow them to do what’s best.”
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