Could the Bengals 1st round plan be as simple as OJ Howard?

[depthchart]

If Drafting and Developing replacements to save money seems to be a theme, then maybe the Bengals Drafting Tight End OJ Howard in round 1 is what they end up doing. Sounds crazy on the surface but Howard is a Stud that would Transform an Offense. If viewed as more Durable and definitely cheaper than Tyler Eifert, could this be an actual Bengal move on Draft day. There may even be a Trade Down opportunity in round 1 that still lands the Bengals OJ Howard. Eifert is likely going to draw a lot of Free Agent interest once he hits the Market which means dollars that the Bengals may not want to spend. The Bengals offense is much better when someone of Tyler Eifert's caliber is healthy & playing. OJ Howard may be even better than Eifert with likely better durability. They could Lock up OJ Howard for 5 years. Am I way off base here or could this actually go down?

[Hammerstripes]

I don't think there's a chance that it happens.

It sounds like they are pretty happy with Kroft and Uzomah as backups. As opposed to previous years, the coaches have said that they need an immediate impact guy (and almost every Hobspin article has talked about WRs, RBs and edge rushers)

I honestly can't see them deviating from those spots.

[oncemoreuntothejimbreech]

Yes, they could draft OJ Howard for the same reasons they drafted Eifert after spending a 1st round pick on Gresham and had both on the team at the same time.

[Hammerstripes]

(03-15-2017, 05:55 PM)oncemoreuntothejimbreech Wrote: Yes, they could draft OJ Howard for the same reasons they drafted Eifert after spending a 1st round pick on Gresham and had both on the team at the same time.

Eifert was the BPA at the time.  I don't see any reason that Howard would be BPA when we pick.  

[oncemoreuntothejimbreech]

(03-15-2017, 05:57 PM)Hammerstripes Wrote: Eifert was the BPA at the time.  I don't see any reason that Howard would be BPA when we pick.  

Who you and I consider BPA may defer from who the Bengals think is BPA.

There are 32 teams with 32 different draft boards.

[depthchart]

(03-15-2017, 05:59 PM)oncemoreuntothejimbreech Wrote: Who you and I consider BPA may defer from who the Bengals think is BPA.

There are 32 teams with 32 different draft boards.

Especially when saving Money is involved.
With that said OJ Howard is a very transformative player for an offense. Maybe more so than say a Derek Barnet or even a Reuben Foster can transform a Defense. They have to at least be considering it. IMO

[The D.O.Z.]

If the guy they want isnt there at 9 and a trade down happens..I could see this. With a patchwork Oline they'll need some help anyways, so why not go get a TE? Yeah, Eifert is a beast when healthy, but he hasn't been too good at that. Is OJ a better blocker than Eifert? I'm rather uninspired about our back ups, Kroft did next to nothing last year, and Uzomah, while showing flashes, didn't perform very well either.

I get it though, we have too many glaring holes to fill for anyone to view OJH as anything more than a luxury pick. But if you take into concideration the weak Oline class of this year's draft, and the very real possibility of Eifert either getting hurt or leaving in FA next year..this move could make sence!

[BURROWorBUST]

(03-15-2017, 05:57 PM)Hammerstripes Wrote: Eifert was the BPA at the time.  I don't see any reason that Howard would be BPA when we pick.  

Because, like

Fournette
Foster
Davis (IMHO)
Hooker/Adams/Peppers (?) 


he'd be best at his position. Worthy of a top 10 pick? Tell me what your priorities are. 

One could argue that Howard would improve our passing game more than Davis or Williams at WR, and he would improve our run game because he's a good blocker. And Eifert is made of glass.  And he's heads and shoulders above our reserves. 

[Hammerstripes]

(03-15-2017, 06:50 PM)Shady Wrote: Because, like

Fournette
Foster
Davis (IMHO)
Hooker/Adams/Peppers (?) 


he'd be best at his position. Worthy of a top 10 pick? Tell me what your priorities are. 

One could argue that Howard would improve our passing game more than Davis or Williams at WR, and he would improve our run game because he's a good blocker. And Eifert is made of glass.  And he's heads and shoulders above our reserves. 

I honestly can't see a scenario where I would take him at #9.  

I guess you could take him and ignore the other major holes on this team.  I can make a much better case for an offensive tackle at #9 then a tight end - since we have a tackle that graded out as the worst in the league last year.  I would go OT long before I go tight end.

If Lattimore is on the board, I'd take him since he's the best at his position and he's much better than our backups.  You can make the case any way you want, but to add a tight end at #9 would be a huge stretch.

[oncemoreuntothejimbreech]

(03-15-2017, 07:01 PM)Hammerstripes Wrote: I honestly can't see a scenario where I would take him at #9.  

I guess you could take him and ignore the other major holes on this team.  I can make a much better case for an offensive tackle at #9 then a tight end - since we have a tackle that graded out as the worst in the league last year.  I would go OT long before I go tight end.

If Lattimore is on the board, I'd take him since he's the best at his position and he's much better than our backups.  You can make the case any way you want, but to add a tight end at #9 would be a huge stretch.

I understand what you're saying. And the reasoning is sound. But, answer this question: where is OJ Howard on the Bengals' board?

[Bengal Dude]

(03-15-2017, 07:45 PM)oncemoreuntothejimbreech Wrote: I understand what you're saying. And the reasoning is sound. But, answer this question: where is OJ Howard on the Bengals' board?

I'd love to see the Bengals sell OJ Howard to the fan base. 

[oncemoreuntothejimbreech]

(03-15-2017, 07:49 PM)Bengal Dude Wrote: I'd love to see the Bengals sell OJ Howard to the fan base. 

I can already see Hobson's title: OJ squeezes Eifert Out

After a week half the fans will tell the pissed off fans they aren't real fans. And the pissed off fans will reply that the don't settle for mediocrity like some fans.

[SunsetBengal]

No, I don't see the Bengals drafting OJ Howard.  Eifert will continue to be our Ninja at TE.  One moment he's there, destroying everything in sight, next moment he's nowhere to be found..

[BURROWorBUST]

(03-15-2017, 07:01 PM)Hammerstripes Wrote: I honestly can't see a scenario where I would take him at #9.  

I guess you could take him and ignore the other major holes on this team.  I can make a much better case for an offensive tackle at #9 then a tight end - since we have a tackle that graded out as the worst in the league last year.  I would go OT long before I go tight end.

If Lattimore is on the board, I'd take him since he's the best at his position and he's much better than our backups.  You can make the case any way you want, but to add a tight end at #9 would be a huge stretch.

Maybe in a different draft year. I don't think there are any OLinemen ranked in the Top 10 picks. Is there a guy out there as good at OT as Howard is at TE?

I'm not trying to make a case that we should draft Howard at #9. I'm still on the Fournette or Foster bandwagon. I could see other guys getting picked though. Howard is one of them. Thomas could be the pick. Any other DE who will be there at #9 would be a reach. I wouldn't take Charlton unless we traded down significantly. He's not a top 10 pick, probably not a top 20-25 pick to be honest. 

[BenZoo2]

Oj is a fine player and may be worthy of the ninth spot. He could help us and guard against the inevitable (?) loss of eifert. That said I hope we don't take him. Plenty of good tight ends in this draft and we have more pressing needs.

[oncemoreuntothejimbreech]

(03-15-2017, 07:58 PM)Shady Wrote: Maybe in a different draft year. I don't think there are any OLinemen ranked in the Top 10 picks. Is there a guy out there as good at OT as Howard is at TE?

I'm not trying to make a case that we should draft Howard at #9. I'm still on the Fournette or Foster bandwagon. I could see other guys getting picked though. Howard is one of them. Thomas could be the pick. Any other DE who will be there at #9 would be a reach. I wouldn't take Charlton unless we traded down significantly. He's not a top 10 pick, probably not a top 20-25 pick to be honest. 

I'm not trying to make the case they should draft him, either. I'm saying we can't rule it out. We don't know how high they have him rated. We know the draft pundit's ratings, but their ratings are meaningless when the Bengals are on the board.

[Bengalpool]

Can't say I would be upset with taking Howard despite the glaring holes, especially if we can move down with a team like Indy or Philly looking to go LB/WR and pick up an additional 2nd or 3rd round pick. I love the idea of having two (or one and a half with Eifert always being hurt) TE's to open up the passing game. With so many holes to fill, I doubt this happens, but ya never know.

[*SHRacerX*]

(03-15-2017, 05:50 PM)depthchart Wrote: If Drafting and Developing replacements to save money seems to be a theme, then maybe the Bengals Drafting Tight End OJ Howard in round 1 is what they end up doing. Sounds crazy on the surface but Howard is a Stud that would Transform an Offense. If viewed as more Durable and definitely cheaper than Tyler Eifert, could this be an actual Bengal move on Draft day. There may even be a Trade Down opportunity in round 1 that still lands the Bengals OJ Howard. Eifert is likely going to draw a lot of Free Agent interest once he hits the Market which means dollars that the Bengals may not want to spend. The Bengals offense is much better when someone of Tyler Eifert's caliber is healthy & playing. OJ Howard may be even better than Eifert with likely better durability. They could Lock up OJ Howard for 5 years. Am I way off base here or could this actually go down?

Similar to what I said about Reddick...if they slide down in the first after several trades back to accumulate 2nd rounders and the guys at the top of the DE and WR list are gone, I could absolutely see them taking him as BPA, but not at #9.  

He is an absolute beast that didn't really fit Bama's offense, but he still had a huge season.  It reminded me of what TJ Houshmanzadeh said about Eifert's elusiveness and speed at this size "it doesn't seem fair".  This guy is a better athlete than Gronk, and that is really saying something.

I think Hue could have his eyes on him because he likes multiple TE sets.  Zampeze doesn't seem to have too many pages in the playbook for such a system....too bad, because I think it really helps the red zone and also the running game.  

[Au165]

I could see a one of the top TE's in the 2nd, but not at 9 Te's simply don't go that high. The other thing is this draft is so deep at TE you could get a really really good one in the 3rd or 4th. Honestly I like Jake Butt in the 3rd. The guy is coming off a major injury and may not be able to contribute next season, but we don't need him next season and in two seasons he could be a potential stud with or without Eiffert.

If your looking for more production this year Jordan Leggett of Clemson is a 3/4 rounder who could be a solid pass catching TE. 4.73 40 kind of a big WR type similar to Jordan Reed.

[*ochocincos*]

(03-16-2017, 09:19 AM)Au165 Wrote: I could see a one of the top TE's in the 2nd, but not at 9 Te's simply don't go that high. The other thing is this draft is so deep at TE you could get a really really good one in the 3rd or 4th. Honestly I like Jake Butt in the 3rd. The guy is coming off a major injury and may not be able to contribute next season, but we don't need him next season and in two seasons he could be a potential stud with or without Eiffert.

If your looking for more production this year Jordan Leggett of Clemson is a 3/4 rounder who could be a solid pass catching TE. 4.73 40 kind of a big WR type similar to Jordan Reed.

It would be shocking to see a TE go in the top 10, however it's worth mentioning that CBSSports has OJ Howard ranked as the #7 overall prospect right now.

Believe it or not, OJ Howard is more athletic and faster than Tyler Eifert. He posted better in every Combine drill besides the vert jump. Plus, one thing that Howard has done which Eifert didn't have much experience with in college was being an inline blocker. OJ Howard would be able to contribute immediately.

Given how fragile Eifert is, how bad the Bengals TEs have been when Eifert has been out, and the fact the team will likely need to use a blocking TE often to help the OL, the idea of drafting Howard doesn't seem so farfetched. However, with that said, I think the fans would throw a fit if they see the Bengals take a TE in the first round when there are more pressing "needs".