Madison Commencement
Bengals hold off season activites
Missing in American Memorial
Home > Blogs > Big C's NFL Blitz > Archives > 2009 > April > 19
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Scouting Bengals Draft
The 2009 NFL draft is expected to be plentiful for the Cincinnati Bengals, who will have 11 picks this year. It is with all intents and purposes that the Bengals will look to add impact players on offense and/or defense in the early rounds and seek depth in the latter portion of the draft.
The Bengals organization is notorious for bucking the trend, so fans should prepare themselves for the unexpected on draft day.
Personally, I am not a Bengals fan, but feel very confident in saying that the team will have a successful draft this year. There are some very interesting prospects high on the team’s list who I like.
Top 5 needs: Offensive tackle, center, defensive end, running back, defensive back.
The Bengals are currently picking in the No. 6 position in round one and although offensive tackle seems to be the logical choice with a crippled O-line, the team could opt to go in different direction.
That being said, it wouldn’t surprise me one bit to hear Ohio State running back Chris “Beanie” Wells’ name called as the Bengals first-round selection. The closer we get to draft day the more I keep hearing Wells’ name associated with the team’s pick.
Some may call the team’s interest in Wells nothing more than a smokescreen. However, I have reason to believe that the Bengals interest in the runner is very genuine.
If either offensive tackle, Jason Smith (Baylor) or Eugene Monroe (Virginia), are on the board when the Bengals make their selection, the decision is a pretty easy one. But if both are gone look for the Bengals to take the best available player and that could very well be Wells. Depending on how the chips fall with picks 1 thru 5. The team also holds offensive tackle Andre Smith (Alabama) in high regard, but is the risk greater than the reward?
Don’t rule out a trade here as well.
Second round
The Bengals would like nothing better than to snag hometown product Louisville center Eric Wood with the 38th overall pick, but he is unlikely to be available. Wood is the best center entering the draft in my book. The Bengals know exactly what they would be getting in Wood, and for that reason don’t count out the team taking an aggressive approach to obtain the versatile O-lineman. If not, the good people of Cincinnati may have to get used to seeing Wood in a Pittsburgh Steelers uniform.
Centers Alex Mack (Cal) and Max Unger (Oregon) are also viable options. If the Bengals fail to pull the trigger on a center in the second-round they could look to a guy like Cecil Newton (Tennessee St.) on Day 2. Newton has been labeled by some NFL scouts as being a diamond in the rough.
Tweet
