04-30-2023, 12:10 PM
I gave the draft a B.
Productive players at very good value. But ones that likely will not upgrade the starting positions this year, but serve as rotational pieces, depth, and potential future starters.
Zac already said the 2nd and 3rd picks were for depth. The first pick, Murphy, will not pass out Hendrickson and Hubbard this year (and Hendrickson and Hubbard are around for two more years), but will rotate with them and with Ossai. But his presence will no doubt elevate the pass rush, and last year the Bengals were 4th from the bottom in QB pressures and sacks. Murphy will add his own pass rush and keep the often-late-in-the-game-gassed Hendrickson fresh.
The pick in the fifth was one of the true gems. The Bengals needed a RB and didn't reach for one. In fact, between the Bengals third-round pick and their fifth-round pick, there was only one RB taken. So, by not selecting an RB in the third or fourth, the Bengals still had their choice of RBs.
The big shortcoming was not getting a TE in a deep and quality TE draft. Do the Bengals really want to go to battle with a one-year-rental in Irv Smith who has been out injured many more games than he has played and who will be one of the shortest TEs in the league? Do the Bengals plan to get one-year rentals each year, to learn the playbook, rather than get an established player at the position? Look at what the Bengals will face when Pittsburgh runs two-TE sets: the twin towers of Pat Freiermuth (6'5") and Darnell Washington (6'7"). Wouldn't the Bengals like to place other teams in the position where they had to find players to defend against tall TEs?
Productive players at very good value. But ones that likely will not upgrade the starting positions this year, but serve as rotational pieces, depth, and potential future starters.
Zac already said the 2nd and 3rd picks were for depth. The first pick, Murphy, will not pass out Hendrickson and Hubbard this year (and Hendrickson and Hubbard are around for two more years), but will rotate with them and with Ossai. But his presence will no doubt elevate the pass rush, and last year the Bengals were 4th from the bottom in QB pressures and sacks. Murphy will add his own pass rush and keep the often-late-in-the-game-gassed Hendrickson fresh.
The pick in the fifth was one of the true gems. The Bengals needed a RB and didn't reach for one. In fact, between the Bengals third-round pick and their fifth-round pick, there was only one RB taken. So, by not selecting an RB in the third or fourth, the Bengals still had their choice of RBs.
The big shortcoming was not getting a TE in a deep and quality TE draft. Do the Bengals really want to go to battle with a one-year-rental in Irv Smith who has been out injured many more games than he has played and who will be one of the shortest TEs in the league? Do the Bengals plan to get one-year rentals each year, to learn the playbook, rather than get an established player at the position? Look at what the Bengals will face when Pittsburgh runs two-TE sets: the twin towers of Pat Freiermuth (6'5") and Darnell Washington (6'7"). Wouldn't the Bengals like to place other teams in the position where they had to find players to defend against tall TEs?
