tms'S MOCK DRAFT
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Not bad. Few guys slipped through the cracks. Another run on D.

  • tms DRAFTING FOR THE
    Bengals
Draft Selections
Taliese Fuaga Head Shot
PICK: 18 RND: 1 (CIN)
Taliese Fuaga
OT Oregon State
Brian Thomas Jr. Head Shot
PICK: 49 RND: 2 (CIN)
Brian Thomas Jr.
WR LSU
Trey Benson Head Shot
PICK: 80 RND: 3 (CIN)
Trey Benson
RB Florida State
Dominick Puni Head Shot
PICK: 114 RND: 4 (CIN)
Dominick Puni
OT Kansas
Jarvis Brownlee Jr. Head Shot
PICK: 148 RND: 5 (CIN)
Jarvis Brownlee Jr.
CB Louisville
Sione Vaki Head Shot
PICK: 193 RND: 6 (CIN)
Sione Vaki
S Utah
Nathaniel Watson Head Shot
PICK: 208 RND: 6 (CIN)
Nathaniel Watson
LB Mississippi State
Tanner McLachlan Head Shot
PICK: 214 RND: 6 (CIN)
Tanner McLachlan
TE Arizona
Evan Anderson Head Shot
PICK: 237 RND: 7 (CIN)
Evan Anderson
DL Florida Atlantic
Draft Grade — Bengals
Overall B
ValueB NeedB+ TradesB- FutureB-
No fireworks, just a tidy B for the Bengals.

You can fall in love with a player. You are not supposed to marry him in the wrong round. The Bengals did exactly that with Evan Anderson in No. 237.

Whatever else happened, they won the night they took Brownlee Jr.. That quarterback hole did not close this weekend, and it was the biggest one on the wall.

In sum, a sturdy weekend with one asterisk, the quarterback spot they never got to.

Pick Analysis
Pick18 Rnd1 Taliese Fuaga
No drama and no debate, Taliese Fuaga went about where he belonged in Round 1, Pick 18. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Pick49 Rnd2 Brian Thomas Jr.
Somehow Brian Thomas Jr. was still sitting there in pick No. 49, and they pounced on premier wide receiver value. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Pick80 Rnd3 Trey Benson
They went early on Trey Benson in the 80th overall pick, and the value did not follow. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Pick114 Rnd4 Dominick Puni
Steal is underselling it; Dominick Puni at the Round 4 slot is a heist with the alarm still ringing. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Pick148 Rnd5 Jarvis Brownlee Jr.
The board fumbled Jarvis Brownlee Jr. all the way to No. 148, and they scooped it up. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Pick193 Rnd6 Sione Vaki
Sione Vaki at pick 193 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. A minor itch, scratched.
Pick208 Rnd6 Nathaniel Watson
By-the-book stuff, Nathaniel Watson at No. 208 squarely in line with his ranking. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Pick214 Rnd6 Tanner McLachlan
A premium they did not need to pay, Tanner McLachlan a notch or two before his time. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Pick237 Rnd7 Evan Anderson
Evan Anderson at the 237th pick is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.