With the 49th pick (2nd round) in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Cincinnati Bengals select LB Demetrius Knight.
There were rumours that the Bengals were interested in a LB, but this is a pretty big reach on my board, as well as many others.
Below is my scouting report on Knight, clipped from my LB Rankings:
Demetrius Knight
School: South Carolina
Ht/Wt: 6’2”, 235 lbs
Strengths:
Knight has good size and length for the position, and plays a tough brand of football. His long arms allow him to disengage quickly from his blocks, and he’s got the strength also to win those battles. Once off the block, he can get into the gap quickly to plug it up, and he is generally a reliable tackler. He is one of those tacklers where you can almost feel the impact when watching it. A hard hitter, but at the same time, he doesn’t sacrifice technique to deliver a big hit. Knight can give you basic capabilities in zone coverage, and has decent downhill speed to make a play in things that are in front of him.
Weaknesses:
Knight has decent speed, but is lacking in twitch. This can make it tough to make late reactions as he is going in for a tackle on a shifty player. I wouldn’t have a ton of confidence in him to play in man coverage, as athletic RB’s or TE’s can separate on him. Physically, he is capable of some shallow zone. However, pump fakes and eye manipulation from the QB have baited him into jumping routes, only for the ball not to be thrown. This led to an open spot down the field that set up an easier completion. His lack of twitch also limits his impact defending against runs to the outside.
Summary:
Knight has a sturdy frame and good length, and has shown to be an asset against inside runs. He is instinctive enough against the run to make plays against outside runs. However, his athleticism, specifically twitch, is lacking. As a result, he isn’t dominant as an outside run defender. As well, it is hard to trust him in man coverage. He can give you work in shallow zone, but his instincts in these instances will have to improve. Knight might be too limited to be a quality starter, but he may find a starting lineup if he ends up on the right team. Though I’d prefer him as a special teamer and rotational backup who can give you decent snaps if filling in for injury.
| Grade: 73.1 | Round Grade: 4th |
It seems as though the Bengals intend to use him early on. We’ll see what this means for Germaine Pratt.
With the 81st pick (3rd round) in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Cincinnati Bengals select G Dylan Fairchild.
Fairchild is also a reach on my board. He is someone who has some things to improve on, but I would say that he has more long term upside than Knight.
Below is my scouting report on Fairchild, clipped from my G Rankings:
Dylan Fairchild
School: Georgia
Ht/Wt: 6’5”, 318 lbs
Strengths:
Fairchild is a G prospect that displayed tremendous athleticism on the football field. In their system, he wasn’t always asked to block in space, but when he was, his movement skills were highly evident. Speed, burst, and agility–the full package. Fairchild is able to get out of his stance quickly and pull to the other side to seal off the edge. He also can easily make it to the second level and hit moving targets when blocking upfield. Fairchild plays with an aggressive attitude and had his head on a swivel. He would be looking for work when left unoccupied, checking to see if he can help out one of his teammates. In pass protection, his quick feet allow him to redirect when pressure is coming from different directions. His arm length gives him an advantage in some matchups, and affords him an opportunity to gain some leverage on his opponent.
Weaknesses:
While he showed some flashes of power, this area was more so a matchup that did not work well for him. He had quite a few stalemates, and was pushed back more than I would have liked to see. At the next level, he’ll need to get stronger. Technique also is not blameless. He played with wide hands way too often, exposing his chest to be struck by his opponent. This also contributed to the times where he was pushed back. With sloppy footwork and an elevated pad level, he would further dig himself into a hole. His awareness on blitzes and stunts can stand to improve. There were times where blitzers would blow by him and he would kind of have this surprised look with an extremely late reaction. Fairchild will need to get stronger also to generate more push as a run blocker.
Summary:
Fairchild is a great athlete for the G position, and has enough length to tilt leverage battles in his favour. That being said, he is a raw prospect, overall, and will need some time to put it all together. He’ll need to get stronger to improve his anchoring ability and ability to drive in the run game. As well, his technique needs improvement in multiple areas. His issues are all fixable, so in theory, the ceiling could actually be quite high. When the to do list is long enough, it can be tough, however. With a lot of work being needed, he’d be a riskier pick earlier on. But somewhere in the middle of day 3, the upside should be worth the flyer.
| Grade: 67.6 | Round Grade: 5th |
Fairchild will likely get a chance to earn a starting role with the Bengals. It will be interesting to see what an offseason of work will do for him. If he has been able to pack on some muscle between now and the end of the season, he is already on his way. We’ll see in camp how far along he is from a technical standpoint, and if he can legitimately challenge for a spot. For the Bengals the faster he can get going, the better, but at the same time, you don’t want to force it.
