Managing to carve out starting roles for three teams as a pro, Lucas Patrick is searching for a new team. The 2024 Saints starter may have an opportunity soon, as the Bengals are bringing him in on a visit.
Patrick is heading to Cincinnati tonight for a Friday meeting, FOX Sports’ Jordan Schultz tweets. The Bengals have some questions at guard, after cutting three-year starter Alex Cappa, and their big-ticket extensions for Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins will force cost-conscious moves at other positions. Patrick qualifies as an affordable option.
It took Patrick until mid-May last year to find a home; he trekked to New Orleans after a two-season Chicago stay. Vacillating between guard and center as a pro, Patrick has started 64 games. The bulk of those have come over the past five seasons. A former UDFA, Patrick is seeking to play a ninth NFL season. He will turn 32 this summer.
The Saints turned to Patrick as a left guard regular last season, while also using him as an Erik McCoy fill-in at center. The former Green Bay UDFA operated as Chicago’s starting center in 2023, after splitting time at both guard spots in 2022. The Packers used Patrick as their primary Corey Linsley replacement in 2021, but they did not re-sign the interior blocker after that season.
Pro Football Focus placed Patrick as a mid-pack guard last season, ranking him 37th. That placement checked in above where Cappa and primary complement Cordell Volson landed. Volson is going into a contract year. Cincinnati briefly benched Volson late last season, inserting Cody Ford into the lineup in his place. The team re-signed Ford last week, giving the former second-round pick a two-year, $6MM deal. Patrick’s visit, however, shows the team at least wants to bring in competition, as Cappa’s loss creates an opening at right guard.
Patrick played out a two-year, $8MM Bears contract and a one-year, $1.38MM Saints accord. PFF had graded him as a bottom-tier center in 2023. The Bengals return Ted Karras, the only cog left from the team’s 2022 O-line shopping spree, at center but carries guard questions.