Round 1:

DT Newton (Illinois)

Elite DT prospect with great quickness.

Round 2:

DT Sweat (Texas)

Only legit NT in the draft that can take on double teams. Powerful.

Round 3a:

OT Kiran Amegadjie (Yale)

Elite length and athleticism. Needs development. But he went to Yale so I assume he's smart.

Round 3b:

C Tanor Bartolini (Wisconsin)

Infectious attitude. Best Athleticisim score at combine (for his position group). Wisconsin lineman. Well coached on technique.
To me it seems like he isn't too much different from the 1st round-rated Centers.

Round 4:

Slot WR Luke McCaffrey (Rice)

Great NFL Bloodline. Great contested catches and one-handed catches. Elite compete level and toughness.
Needs to learn how to separate better and perfect his route running.
Small school player, so he should drop in the draft.
He's still learning the position, but he has the right attitude and will/capacity to learn.
His highlights showcase his ability to make back shoulder catches and wrestle a would be interception away for a touchdown.


....

I had some time to kill today and figured I'd throw something together here.
The rest of the draft is always a crapshoot but I would target BPA and hopefully nab a corner, and a TE that can both block well and make plays in the passing game.

I love the idea of double dipping on the dline as I believe this was our biggest weakness last year on defense--and the biggest reason for our pour run D.
Having a legit rotation of (4) dlineman (one of them with the potential to be an elite NT) would keep the team fresh and free up the linebackers to make plays.
Could run out there (against run formations) with (3) of these DTs on the field along with Hubbard/Murphy and Hendrickson.
Have the ability to let Hill and Rankins leave after their deals are up and get to retain the rookie DTs for 5 and 4 years before re-signing (cap flexibility here).

For the top pick I'd be open to grabbing the following players in place of Newton (but I think Newton could be an elite penetrating DT):
C/G/T Graham Barton (flexibility to play a lot of positions, could actually see him being the pick or one of the top OTs)
OTs Lathom or Mims (I believe the top 4 OTs will be off the board when the Bengals pick). These tackles likely need development, which is why I prefer Newton.
DT Murphy but I like Newton more.
C Jackson Powers-Johnson although I feel like it's better value to grab Bartolini later.
There are a couple corners or edge players I'd consider as well, but I think the above options would be what I consider with the top pick.

Second pick is definitely Sweat all day. I'd consider trading a 6th to move up to get him.

If I were to go OT or C in round 1 I'd definitely hope to get a good corner in the 3rd, but would stick to BPA.

Carter and Tufele are definitely not safe. I would love to double dip at the top and totally remake our DTs. I’ve done mocks taking 3 DTs. And it wouldn’t hurt my feelings if we really did it.

(03-22-2024, 09:36 PM)NATI BENGALS Wrote: Carter and Tufele are definitely not safe. I would love to double dip at the top and totally remake our DTs. I’ve done mocks taking 3 DTs. And it wouldn’t hurt my feelings if we really did it.

Yeah it's time to overhaul the position. Not re-signing Reader was a big sign from the coaching staff and management that things are going to be shaken up along the dline.

They added Rankins so they don't have to draft Newton, but if he's there and clearly the BPA I don't see how you can pass him up.

I could see the Bengals pass on him and draft Lathom or Mims or Barton or someone else, but I could also see them thinking they can get similar value in the 3rd.

If they stick to the board and end up with the two best DT prospects in the draft, that would be an A in my book. Then the 3rd has a ton of great options at other positions.

The 3rd round seems to be a really good spot in the draft. It's nice to have two picks.