Ragnow in for a visit

[CJD]

I'd take him in the 2nd for sure.

Taking him in the 1st round would feel very similar to when we took Ogbuehi in the 1st in 2015. An injured player who people said was a future starter but still didn't get all that much 1st round buzz.

The general reaction was "Well, I mean, they got a good player but...why in the first round? There were reports of him sneaking into the first round maybe, but not at 21. This feels like a reach for need."

Most mock drafts had him going as high as 25 but generally around 34, or 38, or as low as 59 or even 63.

With injured players, there's never really an exact science as to where teams stop worrying about injuries and focus mostly on the talent. With Ogbuehi, it looks like Early 2nd round pick was the consensus where it was worth taking a high upside injured player.

Now, of course, Ogbuehi turned out to not be a good player, so it was all a wash but if Ogbuehi had worked out and been a good player, I don't think the Bengals would have regretted taking him ~15 picks earlier than most mock drafts projected him.

I feel Ragnow falls into that same category.

Is it a reach to take him at 21? By mock draft standards? Definitely. But if he is our starting Center who works well with the team and is not a liability, will we regret the choice 2 to 3 years from now? I don't think so.

For that reason, I'd love to get him in the 2nd round. But if our new Oline coach loves the player and wants him on the team, I wouldn't be upset if we chose him in the first round.