B+
Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals fleeced the room on the phones and earned a B+.
by Whodeycam ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 3 steals
· 4 reaches
The tape said wait; the Bengals did not. Pat Coogan went at No. 160, a good 40 picks before the board was ready.
The phones were where this weekend was really won. Kilgore falling to them is the kind of break a good board is built to catch. The quarterback spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at.
The roster is better shaped than it was, with cornerback chief among the fixes.
In sum, a sturdy weekend with one asterisk, the quarterback spot they never got to.
Pick-by-Pick
In the Round 1 slot they get a featured back, outstanding value to boot.
A clean, defensible pick in the 41st pick with a little surplus value in Dillon Thieneman. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Circle this one: Jalon Kilgore at slot 120 is a fall that decides a draft. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
They talked themselves into Pat Coogan at pick No. 160, and the board did not agree. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Jeff Caldwell at pick 199 is the proof. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A reach on Aiden Fisher in No. 221; the board had better options right there. It fills a real need, too.
They reached a country mile for Josh Cuevas at pick 226, and the board is aghast. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Nick Barrett in the 236th pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.