{The Ultimate Bengals Offseason Extravaganza Thread}

[TJHoushmandzadeh's Shiny Shoes]

(03-20-2025, 12:29 AM)Nicomo Cosca Wrote: I already mentioned the Eagles, but what about KC? Their best DL (Jones) was drafted 37th, their best LB (Bolton) 58th, and their best DB (McDuffie) 21st.

Spags wasn’t “gifted” a bunch of high picks either, and we’ve all seen his results.

37 is a much better spot to get a DT than 49; 21 is a much better spot to get a DB than 31.

You’re picking from the next tier down with those picks.When you pick from a lower bucket you are typically picking a lesser athlete or picking an equivalent athlete but with lesser production - which is usually a red flag.

58 is comparable to 65. But just compare the difference in picking 65 (Logan Wilson) or even 72 (Germaine Pratt) to 78 (Malik Jefferson), 87 (Nick Vigil), 99 (Paul Dawson), 118 (Sean Porter).

Picking from the tier down is playing in hard mode. That does matter. You end up gambling on players with red flags who bust. You pick lesser athletes who just don’t have the same impact.

Of course occasionally you’ll get someone who completely outperforms their draft slot - Geno Atkins, Jessie Bates, Tee Higgins. With hindsight the League takes them all in the first round. But for the most part draft position does matter. You’ll do really well to get an impact DE at 28, a star QB outside the top 5, a star CB after about 25, a star tackle after about 15 (we were lucky last year was deep at OT for Mims) etc. But picking 17 this year there’s a chance there’s an elite DE or CB still there. We probably will have our pick of safety of linebacker at 17 should we so wish. We could probably get a really good LB at 49, maybe a S but if we’re looking for DEs, CBs or DTs at 49 they are going to have flawed profiles.