Overall, I'm pretty happy with the Bengals draft.

There is one pick I'm a little mystified at, though. It's Tee Higgins. In my opinion, I think we already have this guy on the team. It's Auden Tate. Their measurables are almost IDENTICAL.

Both are 76 inches tall. Both are 215+ pounds. Both ran around a 4.6 40 yard dash and both have an exact vertical of 31 inches. Both had an exact 20 yard shuttle of 4.5. They both have similar wing span and arm length. Athletically, they are the same person. Their games are almost identical. They both make plays by using their big bodies and elevating over defenders, not by getting incredible separation at the line.

I'd be cool with the pick if Auden Tate wasn't on the team and he didn't show flashes last year - but he is and he did. He was my pick to have an even bigger breakout this year.

So all in all im a little disappointed with this pick. What does everyone else think?

I think he’s faster than a 4.6. Didn’t he have an issue during the combine slowing him down? Maybe I’m thinking of someone else?

(04-26-2020, 02:43 PM)HarleyDog Wrote: I think he’s faster than a 4.6. Didn’t he have an issue during the combine slowing him down? Maybe I’m thinking of someone else?

Not sure but I remember people giving Higgins a hard time about his combine numbers. They were pretty ugly. 

The things is though is that Higgins plays like he tested. He's not super athletic. He plays above the rim and uses his size and physicality to win. Much like Auden Tate. That's my point - this guy is already on the team.

I'm not really questioning Higgins ability.

Just because they have the same “ size” which they don’t by 2 inches , Higgins is the superior athlete and much better “football” player. There’s no comparison here. It’s silly. Like comparing Ogbuehi who’s 605 n 300 to William Roaf who was also 605 300 n calling them the same players.

He runs mid 4.5 and was rumored to run even faster. I don’t see how you can compare the two though. Auden Tate was taken as a 7th rounder and while I am a fan of his game, isn’t as productive as Higgins, especially in the collegiate level. All in all very happy we took tee over mims, in a few years I feel that we all will be.

(04-26-2020, 02:50 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: Not sure but I remember people giving Higgins a hard time about his combine numbers. They were pretty ugly. 

Gave him a hard time because he didn’t run at the combine

(04-26-2020, 02:50 PM)Socal Bengals fan Wrote: Just because they have the same “ size” which they don’t by 2 inches , Higgins is the superior athlete and much better “football” player. There’s no comparison here. It’s silly.  Like comparing Ogbuehi who’s 605 n 300 to William Roaf who was also 605 300 n calling them the same players.

How can you sit here and realistically say there is no comparison between Higgins and Tate after the info I just gave you?

It's more than just their size and speed. It's how they play the game. They are both physical receivers who win based on their size and physicality.

They are similar. If you really like one...why not get two?

(04-26-2020, 02:54 PM)psychdoctor Wrote: They are similar.  If you really like one...why not get two?

I just think if you have one why do you need two? You could have drafted for a different position of need. That's my gripe here. 

Not a good comparison at all. Higgins is closer to AJ than Tate. Watch him run, he’s crazy smooth and “looks” faster than he really is. I love this pick. And I originally wanted Mims or Pittman over Higgins. But the more I watch of him, the more I like what I see. I think he has the potential to be a #1, and as much as I like Tate, that’s not even remotely realistic for him.

(04-26-2020, 02:55 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: I just think if you have one why do you need two? You could have drafted for a different position of need. That's my gripe here. 

I think Bengals and other teams like to pair a rookie QB with an upcoming rookie WR.  But also, Bengals WR 1 & 2 have injury history.  Another issue that I did not consider fully before the draft is that there was a run on WR.  When a position group run occurs, teams sometime feel they need to strike.  

Although the WR was deep as a whole, the talent pool between tier 1 and tier 2-3 was an issue for some teams.  Higgins would have been considered one of the top WR in most draft classes.  

I'm a huge Auden Tate fan. Have been from day 1 he was
A Bengal . But him and Higgins have slight differences to how they
Play the postion.
Higgins ran a more varied route tree at Clemson.
Higgins played in more "big"games
Higgins played in a more complex offense at Clemson
I think Higgins might have better quick twitch
Movements

You should be happy with the pick then. Auden Tate caught anything thrown his way. I have been excited to see what he will do this year. Green Higgins Tate and Boyd lined up together? There is going to be at minimum 1 mismatch and we have multiple red zone threats with size and sure hands. The WR core in my opinion is maybe the #1 strength of this team. Oh and did i forget to mention Higgins tied Hopkins and Watkins for most TDs while at Clemson, and I think those guys are doing quite well in the NFL.

I fell like Tee gets more seperation and runs away from more defenders and is better after the catch. But yes he also plays the ball well and does the above the rim game. So has similarities but not the same.

I had no issue going WR over OT at 33. Why? Because I do not think any of the remaining OT guys were plug & play, and thus would not be an upgrade on Hart/Johnson in year 1. Plus, two rookie OTs is a bit scary.

As for Higgins, I did prefer Pittman (and Aiyuk) to him after the top 4 guys. Pittman is bigger, stronger, a better run blocker, and plays special teams (returned and blocked kicks). Aiyuk was not an option. I did prefer Tee to the guys who were I thought were more raw, but had more speed (Mims, Shenault, Claypool). 33 was too rich for them. If we wanted those dudes, we could get them with a trade down.

I am with you worrying about him not getting separation, especially in the CFP vs OSU & LSU.

On the bright side, he just turned 21, and is likely to get a bit stronger (& maybe faster). He has experience both wide and in the slot, thus allowing him to play with any 2 of our other top WRs: Green, Ross, Boyd, or Tate. I do not think our other 33 options had slot/wide flex like that.

And the Bengals are his favorite team and AJ is his idol. He'll bust his butt and will be happy to be here.

(04-26-2020, 03:10 PM)thompson19osu Wrote: You should be happy with the pick then. Auden Tate caught anything thrown his way. I have been excited to see what he will do this year. Green Higgins Tate and Boyd lined up together? There is going to be at minimum 1 mismatch and we have multiple red zone threats with size and sure hands. The WR core in my opinion is maybe the #1 strength of this team. Oh and did i forget to mention Higgins tied Hopkins and Watkins for most TDs while at Clemson, and I think those guys are doing quite well in the NFL.

This is not getting enough attention. I know Higgins had a hell of a QB throwing to him (he will here too), but that’s damn good company right there.

And then we have Boyd who broke Larry Fitzgerald’s records at Pitt. I’m really loving our WR group right now. Just need them to stay healthy.

You would like to see both AJ and Tate lined up on the outside correct? Well AJ unfortunately won't be here forever (I'm hoping longer than just this year, but who knows).

With Higgins, we will be able to have a similar scheme despite AJs absense... so I'm not sure the comparison even matters because in theory Higgins isn't a Tate replacement, he is an AJ replacement.

Tee ran a 4.54 40. Tate ran 4.68. Tee didn't run a 4.5 20 yard shuttle he ran 4.25 which would have been good for 6th at the combine for WR. Tee has longer arms. They aren't even close to the same player.

(04-26-2020, 02:53 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: It's more than just their size and speed. It's how they play the game. 

Exactly.  Higgens plays the game much better than Tate.  Not hard to figure out really.  

I can come up with a long list of WRs who have the same size, speed, and style as MIchael Thomas but none of them would be in his class as a receiver because he is better at a ton of little things that seperate the stars from the scrubs.

There were 66 wide receivers that had at least 40 cathes last year.  Know where Tate ranked in catch percentage?  66th.  And you can't blame the QBs because no other Bengal WRs were that bad.

(04-26-2020, 03:10 PM)thompson19osu Wrote:  Auden Tate caught anything thrown his way. 

WTF?

His 50% catch percentage was DEAD LAST among WRS with at least 40 receptions.