With college football quickly breezing by, mock drafts are once again becoming a household man across the world wide web. And yes, while the Cincinnati Bengals are enjoying an incredible start to their season and officially have their eyes set on the playoffs, it’s never a bad idea to look ahead for future talent that can keep the Bengals as a playoff contender.
Thanks to our friend Joe Marino at The Draft Network, the Bengals land quite the connection in his latest mock draft, as they don’t have to look too far for cornerback help.
Note the draft order was set using reverse Super Bowl odds, which is why the Bengals were selecting 14th in this particular mock. But it lands them CB Ahmad Gardner from … Cincinnati:
Cincinnati has invested in free agent corners in recent years with Mike Hilton and Chidobe Awuzie being hits and Trae Waynes being a flop. The Bengals can get out of Waynes’ deal after the season and create $11 million in cap space. It would be a surprise if they didn’t.
Ahmad Gardner would provide the Bengals with a young and talented option to stabilize a starting job on the outside. He’s a physical defender with elite athleticism and the ability to make game-changing plays on the football.
Gardner is an incredible cornerback talent that could make a case to be CB1 if not for LSU’s Derek Stingley Jr. He was an All-American in 2020 and is having another great year in 2021.
And by the way, his nickname is “Sauce.” Need we say anything else?
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