CINCINNATI -- Before turning our full attention to free agency, the draft and the 2015 season, let's take one last look back at 2014.

We're doing that all this week through this position-by-position review of the Cincinnati Bengals' recent 10-5-1 campaign that ended with a wild-card round loss at Indianapolis.

Previous entries in the series. Now we continue with linebackers:

2014 cap value: $13.7 million total -- Vontaze Burfict ($5.3 million), Rey Maualuga ($3.8 million), Vincent Rey ($2.1 million), Sean Porter ($607,575), Emmanuel Lamur ($495,000), Jayson DiManche ($463,603), Marquis Flowers ($439,670), Nico Johnson ($320,294), Chris Carter ($151,756)

Highlights: The only real highlight from the year for the Bengals' linebackers was Rey, who was thrust off the bench and into the starting rotation due to injuries. Rey got the most action of his career, and the five-year veteran didn't disappoint. After beginning the year as a backup, he finished the regular season 12th in the league in tackles with 121. His growth and emergence were the better parts of a season that was a real nightmare for first-year linebackers coach Matt Burke and first-year defensive coordinator (and former linebackers coach) Paul Guenther. Aside from Rey's play, the Bengals also got a much-needed boost in run defense when Maualuga was on the field. Opposing teams averaged 4.9 yards per rush without Maualuga on the field. When he was, they were limited to just 3.6.

Lowlights: As previously mentioned, injuries completely derailed the Bengals linebacker corps. They started Week 1 and continued throughout the season. Burfict missed time in most of the first six games because of head and neck injuries sustained while making tackles. The concussions that resulted troubled Guenther to the point he emphatically told reporters one day his prized defender better make corrections to his technique.

In one of the two games he finished, Week 8 against Baltimore, Burfict suffered a knee injury that later required surgery. The first procedure didn't work as well as hoped, so he was shut down for the remainder of the season, only to undergo microfracture surgery early this offseason. He's expected to rehab up until close to training camp. Burfict was one of four linebackers to miss four games or more due to injury.

Play of the year: Just as we did for the defensive tackles' play of the year, we have to turn to the dramatic goal-line stand the Bengals had at New Orleans to recognize the best play the linebackers had. Specifically, it was Maualuga -- and safety Shawn Williams -- who helped keep the Saints out of the end zone at the end of a grueling 17-play drive. Just before Maualuga and Williams converged on Saints tight end Erik Lorig on fourth down for a tackle that led to a 1-yard loss, the Bengals had held the Saints out of the end zone on five straight plays inside the 10.

Necessary improvements: Other than getting the unit to play as healthy as possible next season, the Bengals will want to focus on coverage from the nickel linebacker position. They faced quite the tight-end gauntlet in 2014 with Jimmy Graham, Rob Gronkowski, Delanie Walker, Greg Olsen and Jordan Cameron. It meant Lamur had his share of one-on-one matchups. He struggled with many of them. Gronkowski caught six passes for 100 yards and a touchdown while being covered by Lamur. Olsen caught five passes on Lamur in the Bengals' overtime tie with the Panthers. Assuming Lamur gets re-signed, he'll have to be more reliable in 2015.