B+
Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals fleeced the room on the phones and earned a B+.
by wr ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 5 steals
· 1 reaches
There is conviction, and then there is this. The Bengals took Caden Curry a full 59 picks ahead of where the board had him, an overdraft steep enough that it colors the whole weekend. Good, not great, and the B+ says as much.
They robbed the room blind at the table, and it lifts the grade on its own. A whole weekend of picks and tight end is somehow still a want.
The Wagner pick alone nudges the whole weekend up a notch. The Poona Ford deal gives the class an established piece to lean on.
Not a headline-grabber, but a perfectly good weekend's work.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick 13 they get a three-down second-level presence at fair value.
Chris Johnson slipping to pick No. 41 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Value with a capital V on Lee Hunter in the 61st pick, a genuine coup. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Caden Curry at No. 72 is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
Emmett Johnson in the Round 4 slot lands just on the right side of the ledger. The roster fit checks out.
Nice patience on Aamil Wagner, who had no business lasting to the 189th overall pick. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
A slide stopped in slot 199, with Keagen Trost worth more than the price. A need, and now a little less of one.
Jeremiah Wright in the 221st overall pick is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
Thaddeus Dixon at pick No. 226 is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the cornerback. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
The board had Eli Heidenreich higher than the Round 7 slot, and the wide receiver fell to them anyway. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.