Mock draft season is well underway, and with all of the prospect games, as well as the NFL Combine, now in the rearview mirror, I’ve decided to jump in. This is the first of several that I will be doing for the Bengals between now and draft day. My intention with these mock drafts is to cover many different scenarios and include a variety of prospects over this period, and then do one “final” mock prior to the draft. At this point, I am getting through my prospect evaluations, but knowledge of some position groups is still limited. For now, I will only be including prospects that I am at least somewhat familiar with, and as the process continues, the variety should increase.
This mock was done on the FanSpeak simulator, and I only picked for the Bengals. It is always an interesting process, especially when it is the first one of the year. As is often the case, some things happened that were unexpected, including the selection of a LB and two WR’s. Let’s take a look at the full mock draft.
Rd 1, Pk 18: TE – Brock Bowers
Bowers is not only the best TE in this draft, but the best to enter the draft in quite some time. The odds of him falling to pick 18 are questionable at best, but with the TE seemingly being undervalued around the league, it remains within the realm of possibility. Bowers doesn’t have great height for the position, at 6’3”, but he has good hands and a good enough reach to still make tough contested catches. He is also the best YAC TE that I have ever scouted out of college. Would bring an immediate high end impact to the Bengals offence.
Rd 2, Pk 49: DT – T’Vondre Sweat
Sweat is the top NT in this year’s class. He brings tremendous power, clogs up gaps, and makes plays against the run. He isn’t a flashy pass rusher, but he pushes the pocket quite well. Offers a bit more as a rusher than you would see out of most NT prospects. With DJ Reader departing for Detroit, this would fill a massive need.
Rd 3, Pk 80: OT – Kiran Amegadije
The board didn’t quite go my way, as some of the other top OT’s were already gone by this point. But by no means am I unhappy with this pick. Amegadije brings size, strength, power, and athleticism to the table. A complete package as far as traits go. At Yale, he didn’t go up against great competition, so there will be an adjustment period for him, as he won’t be able to rely on physical traits alone in the NFL. He’ll have to improve his technique. But if he can make that happen, he can be a high end starter. As of the writing of this article, it was announced that the Bengals will be having Trent Brown in for a visit. If they can get him under contract, it would give a prospect like Amegadije some time to develop without the pressure of starting too early.
Rd 3, Pk 97: LB, Payton Wilson
In all honesty, I didn’t expect Wilson to be available here. In fact, I didn’t even expect to be taking a LB. But here we are. Wilson brings good athleticism and can play in coverage. He also has the speed to make tackles sideline to sideline. His injury history may push him down draft boards, but he would be a tremendous value add towards the end of the 3rd. I do admit that adding him to a LB room that already has Logan Wilson and Germaine Pratt would be creating a pretty big logjam. But I am very much in favour of a best player available (“BPA”) approach.
Rd 4, Pk 115: G – Zak Zinter
Zinter is a big body who brings good strength and toughness to the table. I like his tape and think he is a starter at the next level. In a normal year, he would be going much earlier. However, he unfortunately suffered a broken leg towards the end of last season, fracturing his tibia and fibula. We have seen good prospects fall quite a ways in past years due to injuries. I think Zinter will fall a little bit too. If he does, he would be a good value pick late on day 2 or early on day 3.
Rd 5, Pk 149: CB – Chau Smith-Wade
Smith-Wade brings a ball hawking mentality, some toughness, and decent athleticism on the boundary. I don’t think his traits will blow you away, and he needs to be more cautious of the risks he takes, but Smith-Wade has the coverage talent and ball skills to become a good outside corner, if he can take the right steps forward in his development. A good mid round prospect.
Rd 6, Pk 194: DT – Khristian Boyd
Boyd is someone I became familiar with through the Hula Bowl and East-West Shrine Game. He impressed in both prospect games, showing flashes as a pass rusher. Boyd is an athletic player who also brings a lot of power to the table.
Rd 6, Pk 214: WR – Jha’Quan Jackson
Jackson was one of the standouts in the Senior Bowl practices. He brings dynamic speed and is a good route runner. Jackson can win deep down the field, and would bring another element to the Bengals offence. Could see snaps on special teams as well.
Rd 7, Pk 224: DE – Austin Booker
He’s probably the guy in this mock draft that I am least familiar with. Have had limited exposures, but from what I’ve seen, Booker is a good athlete with ability to rush around the edge. Might have some question marks as a run defender, though. I am also not sure about how realistic this draft slot is for him, but he was on the board in the simulator.
Rd 7, Pk 237: WR, Anthony Gould
Gould is someone who caught my eye while watching tape on his Oregon State teammate, OT Taliese Fuaga. I didn’t envision drafting two WR’s, but the board was starting to dry up towards the end, and I decided to take a shot on some upside, regardless of position. Gould lacks size, but is a speed demon. I’d expect him to play more in the slot at the NFL level, but he played on the outside quite a bit in college. He has the ability to cook man coverage and get open over the top. Could be a sneaky good add later on in the draft, as he has some dynamic qualities.
Modified Featured Image Via: Maize & Blue Nation (CC)