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In recent weeks, ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. endeared himself to Cincinnati Bengals fans as he became one of the only national voices defending the franchise as it got ready to take Joe Burrow.
But now Kiper seems like one of the only guys not throwing an “A” grade at the Bengals for their 2020 draft class.
Kiper wrote the following, assigning the Bengals a “B+” grade:
Joe Burrow is the quarterback to help the Bengals move forward. Every team I talked to loved him, and his rise from potential fifth- or sixth-rounder is amazing. He improved so much throughout 2019 that it was clear by the end of the season that he was going to be the top pick. He has the “it” factor, and I can’t wait to see what he does in 2020. I also like that coach Zac Taylor & Co. were able to get Burrow some help at the top of Round 2. Wide receiver Tee Higgins (33) caught touchdown passes the past two seasons from the potential 2021 top pick, and now he’ll catch passes from the 2020 No. 1.
Linebackers Logan Wilson (65) and Akeem Davis-Gaither (107) improve one of the league’s worst units from a year ago, and Wilson in particular could be a steal. Khalid Kareem (147) had 26 tackles for loss over the past two seasons.Cincinnati probably isn’t going to win many games in 2020, but it’s going to be fun to watch. This draft and offseason has set the stage for rise, and I’m excited to see where it goes next.
It’s a little weird to think the Bengals backed into the best quarterback prospect since Andrew Luck and got what was universally accepted good value at the majority of the spots.
And maybe this is just nitpicking, but given how Kiper had talked about the Bengals leading up to the draft, it seemed like the quality class would have him doing more of the same.
Even so, Bengals fans can probably give him a pass on this one.
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