B
Cincinnati Bengals
Nwaiwu should have been long gone. The Bengals pounced, and earned a B.
by Khoston1999 ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 6 steals
· 2 reaches
Thirty-one other rooms let Febechi Nwaiwu slide, and the Bengals were the ones holding the card at pick No. 226. Highway robbery.
That tight end hole did not close this weekend, and it was the biggest one on the wall. They will need Fa'amoe to outplay his draft slot in a hurry to justify it. Cornerback is handled and the depth chart looks a good deal healthier for it.
They reloaded the coverage unit in bulk.
In sum, a sensible class that nudges the roster the right way.
Pick-by-Pick
In Round 1, Pick 10 they get a centerfielder for the defense, and a steal at that.
They barely believed it either: Ty Simpson still on the board at the Round 2 slot. A need, and now a little less of one.
They will replay Keith Abney II at the 72nd overall pick for years; that is how good the value is. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Deontae Lawson at slot 110 is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Mason Reiger at No. 189 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Bobby Jamison-Travis at the 199th pick is a conviction pick that outran the value. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A wild overpay on Fa'alili Fa'amoe in pick 221, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It fills a real need, too.
They robbed the room for Febechi Nwaiwu here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.