The Cincinnati Bengals have a rinse-dry-repeat approach to free agency. Director of player personnel Duke Tobin revealed the organization's simple strategy when it comes to roster-building when asked about his 14 pending free agents at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis last month.
Rocket science, it is not. But it is effective enough to lead the Bengals to five straight playoff appearances and six in their last seven seasons.
"We always believe in our philosophy, which is draft, develop and retain," Tobin said. "Well, we're at the retain point with some of these guys. And that's going to be our focus. We're going to spend our resources on the known quantities that we've developed and we know how they fit with our club and we know they're backgrounds and their personalities. It's been working with them, so we're going to spend our resources and our time trying to lock those guys up."
That strategy is in full effect as the Bengals have agreed on a multi-year contract that will keep free agent safety George Iloka in Cincinnati for the near future.
Once players can officially sign contracts at 4 pm ET, Iloka will put pen to paper on a five-year deal worth $30 million, with $18 million due in the first three seasons. That three-year total is only eclipsed by Donte Whitner's 2014 signing in Cleveland. Iloka will bank more money in that time than Seattle gave Kam Chancellor and Miami gave Reshad Jones.
"He understands all our adjustments," Bengals defensive coordinator Paul Guenther said. "He's real, real smart. He's been there since we put (the defense) in and he sits right in the front row like I'm sitting with you guys and he asks all the questions and he's good and he's accountable and all those things."
The 26-year-old free agent was a fifth-round pick in 2012, assuming starting duties in his second season. He missed four games this past year, but finished with 47 tackles, four passes defended and one interception. It was reported that the Detroit Lions, Atlanta Falcons, New York Giants and Minnesota Vikings had all expressed interest in Iloka during the NFL's legal tampering period.
