Thomas82'S MOCK DRAFT

Mock 12

  • Thomas82 DRAFTING FOR THE
    Bengals
Draft Selections
Terrion Arnold Head Shot
PICK: 18 RND: 1 (CIN)
Terrion Arnold
CB Alabama
T'Vondre Sweat Head Shot
PICK: 49 RND: 2 (CIN)
T'Vondre Sweat
DT Texas
Patrick Paul Head Shot
PICK: 80 RND: 3 (CIN)
Patrick Paul
OT Houston
Trey Benson Head Shot
PICK: 97 RND: 3 (CIN)
Trey Benson
RB Florida State
McKinnley Jackson Head Shot
PICK: 115 RND: 4 (CIN)
McKinnley Jackson
DL Texas A&M
Johnny Wilson Head Shot
PICK: 149 RND: 5 (CIN)
Johnny Wilson
WR Florida State
Dwight McGlothern Head Shot
PICK: 194 RND: 6 (CIN)
Dwight McGlothern
CB Arkansas
Trey Knox Head Shot
PICK: 214 RND: 6 (CIN)
Trey Knox
TE South Carolina
Solomon Byrd Head Shot
PICK: 224 RND: 7 (CIN)
Solomon Byrd
DE-EDGE USC
Jowon Briggs Head Shot
PICK: 237 RND: 7 (CIN)
Jowon Briggs
DT Cincinnati
Frank Crum Head Shot
PICK: 238 RND: 7 (CIN)
Frank Crum
OT Wyoming
Draft Grade — Bengals
Overall B
ValueB- NeedB+ TradesB- FutureB-
The Bengals kept it disciplined and banked a B.

They will call it conviction in the building and a reach everywhere else: Frank Crum, 57 picks early at the Round 7 slot. It does the job without flash, and the B reflects it.

Landing McGlothern that late papers over a lot of smaller sins. The linebacker hole is the one line item this class does not answer. Job largely done: cornerback settled and 6 of 8 of the wish list covered.

Nearly every premium pick went to that side of the ball.

All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but linebacker.

Pick Analysis
Pick18 Rnd1 Terrion Arnold
In slot 18 they get a sticky cover corner. The biggest hole, addressed.
Pick49 Rnd2 T'Vondre Sweat
A tidy little value on T'Vondre Sweat in No. 49, a step better than break-even. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Pick80 Rnd3 Patrick Paul
Patrick Paul at the 80th overall pick is money in the bank, a offensive lineman taken below his worth. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Pick97 Rnd3 Trey Benson
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Trey Benson in Round 3, Pick 34. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Pick115 Rnd4 McKinnley Jackson
McKinnley Jackson in pick 115 is the kind of reach that only looks good if he outplays it. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Pick149 Rnd5 Johnny Wilson
Johnny Wilson in the Round 5 slot should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Pick194 Rnd6 Dwight McGlothern
Circle this one: Dwight McGlothern at pick 194 is a fall that decides a draft. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Pick214 Rnd6 Trey Knox
A reach on Trey Knox in pick No. 214; the board had better options right there. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Pick224 Rnd7 Solomon Byrd
Value said wait; Solomon Byrd in No. 224 says they were not listening. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
Pick237 Rnd7 Jowon Briggs
A real head-scratcher, Jowon Briggs in Round 7, Pick 17 is miles ahead of his ranking. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Pick238 Rnd7 Frank Crum
They reached into another round for Frank Crum, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.