5 Bengals Who Will Be on the Roster Bubble in 2015

A former fixture as the leader of an annually elite defense, Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle Domata Peko now personifies players who will spend the path to the 2015 campaign and beyond on the roster bubble. 

Marvin Lewis and the Cincinnati front office understand that the championship window continues to creep shut after four consecutive playoff berths have resulted in zero wins.

Veterans such as Peko and key contributors from a fading regime dot the roster as question marks this offseason and beyond.

For the Bengals, these bubble questions are not entirely about money.

Observers know that players such as Greg Little, Kevin Brock and others will be on the bubble, but more interesting is whether the front office will move on from big-name players such as Peko.

Within, let's take a look at five Bengals who will wind up on the bubble going into next season, as decreasing returns may encourage the staff to give their spots to younger players—thus greasing the window and shoving it back open.

Leon Hall, CB

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Father Time never loses.

Just ask Leon Hall, whose bouts with injury and age—he turned 30 in December—helped produce arguably his worst season as a pro.

Over at Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Hall ranked as the No. 55 corner in the league, a far cry from his No. 24 spot in 2012. In 2012, he allowed a quarterback rating of 80.6, while this past season he allowed 104.9.

According to Spotrac, Hall represents a $9.6 million cap hit in 2015 before he hits free agency the following offseason.

The writing is on the wall for Hall. While Terence Newman is gone, Adam Jones is still around for one more year and remains the secondary's best cover corner. Based on recent play, Dre Kirkpatrick is ready for more time as a starter, while Darqueze Dennard will demand time sooner rather than later.

Much of Hall's status with the team will hinge on health and the play of others, as well as a potential contract restructure.

Domata Peko, DT

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Domata Peko and the Cincinnati defensive line are under siege.

What could go wrong in 2014 did. Defensive coordinator Paul Guenther challenged tackle Geno Atkins after the season, as the Georgia product struggled all season long to regain his pre-ACL tear form.

“Otherwise we need to go find a new inside rusher,” said Guenther, per Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “I wish I had the answer (to his slide). He just didn’t play as effectively as he has in the past. Whether it’s in his mind from a health standpoint—we got to get that figured out before next season starts.”

The challenge echoes across the entire line, though.

While Atkins' form and the loss of Michael Johnson to free agency did not help matters, Peko was a visible weak point in the trenches most weeks, hence his No. 80 rank at PFF this season on a list that graded 81 players.

Peko represents a $3.7 million hit in 2015, which rises by $725,000 the year after.

While not horrible numbers by any means, there are only so many roster spots to go around in the confines of a 4-3 defense. Peko's struggles may see him pushed to the wayside by Brandon Thompson and others who may join the roster via the draft or free agency.

Robert Geathers, DE

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Stick with the defensive line for a moment and focus on 31-year-old end Robert Geathers.

An underrated element for most of the Marvin Lewis era, Geathers fell flat this season, as younger players such as Margus Hunt and Will Clarke were either not healthy or ready for the responsibilities in the wake of Michael Johnson's departure.

This forced Geathers into 604 snaps, which resulted in his ranking dead last as the 59th-rated 4-3 defensive end at PFF. 

Similar to Peko, a $3.05 million cap hit is not a wildly unreasonable number, especially if the staff would like to keep his veteran leadership on the roster. One has to think, though, that the staff will also make a point to upgrade the edge rush, which places Geathers firmly on the bubble.

Andre Smith, RT

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Now flip to the offensive side of the trenches.

The tumultuous ride with Andre Smith may be near a conclusion after a miserable 2014 campaign that concluded early with a season-ending injury.

Smith heads into 2015 with one year left on his contract, which is noteworthy because the last time he did that, he posted the best year of his career.

Alas, a serious injury and downtrodden performance that saw him ranked as the No. 47 tackle in the league at PFF after nine starts on the right side of the line are hard to ignore.

Smith represents a gaudy $6.8 million cap hit next season before he heads to the open market once more.

Like the defensive side, the offensive trenches will be in a state of flux over the course of the next few seasons. What happens in the draft and free agency, as well as Smith's health, will put a spotlight on whether the staff wants to dole out notable coin on a struggling tackle.

Mohamed Sanu, WR

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Mohamed Sanu had his chance.

With Marvin Jones out of the picture, as well as tight end Tyler Eifert, the former Rutgers star assumed the mantle of No. 2 receiver. Sometimes Sanu was the top target, too, thanks to nagging injury issues suffered by A.J. Green.

There were flashes, sure. Sanu caught 10 passes for 120 yards and a score against the Carolina Panthers. A few weeks later, he caught five for 125 in a victory against the Baltimore Ravens.

The negatives happen to be the majority, though. Look at the Wild Card Round against the Indianapolis Colts. Sanu caught just three of seven targets for 31 yards and struggled consistently to get open off the line, indicative of his season as a whole.

According to PFF, Sanu led the league in dropped passes with 14 and accounted for two of Andy Dalton's interceptions.

Next year, Green and Jones will be healthy. If early-season usage this year is any indication, Eifert will be a major staple of the attack. Even James Wright showed flashes, and try not to forget about the receiving abilities of Jeremy Hill and Giovani Bernard out of the backfield, either.

Going into the final year of his rookie contract, Sanu finds himself a candidate for the bubble.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com. Advanced metrics via Pro Football Focus (subscription required).