The Cincinnati Bengals were without a first round selection for the first time in many fans’ memories. They swapped the No. 10 selection for All-Pro defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence to come in and control the line of scrimmage, something they haven’t been able to do since they lost D.J. Reader.
That left many wondering if a player was falling, should Cincinnati try to trade back into the first round to catch a steal?
According to SB Nation’s recent survey, Bengals fans weren’t looking for the team
to do anything of the sort:
It makes sense, especially with how Round 1 came to an end with a run on offensive players, especially offensive linemen. Not that the Bengals wouldn’t have considered an offensive lineman if one of those fell to them in the second.
However, it seemed like they were probably watching their board, astounded that so many defensive players were still around so late.
This led to the team taking edge rusher Cashius Howell out of Texas A&M with the 41st pick: A very good prospect that had a good chance of not being there.
The move to get back in for a player would probably have cost the team at least their third-round selection, if not more, from the 2027 draft, depending on how far back in they’d be looking to go.
As it played out, the Bengals seemed to do the right thing. They walked away after the first two rounds with an absolute game-changer in Lawrence and a very valuable pass rusher in Howell without giving up even more draft capital to get there.
So the front office and fans can both walk away from that situation happy, something we’ve not been able to say enough in previous drafts.
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