The Cincinnati Bengals are the star of any 2020 mock draft right now.
Favorites to land the first pick by a large margin, those Bengals don’t go the unexpected route in mocks right now — it’s all about LSU passer Joe Burrow.
Burrow, the fast-rising quarterback and Athens, Ohio native, is the pick by the Bengals in a new four-round mock from Luke Easterling of Draft Wire:
“For the longest time now, it’s seemed Tua Tagovailoa was written into this spot with permanent marker. But Burrow’s performance so far this season has launched him into the No. 1 overall conversation, while a hip injury has ended Tagovailoa’s season. Burrow looks like the real deal in every way.”
After Burrow, the Bengals grab some offensive line help with Alex Leatherwood from Alabama at No. 33 in the second round. They then follow up with another tackle in the third round at No. 65, this one Darryl Williams out of Mississippi State. In the fourth, things switch to the defensive side of the ball where they grab Michigan linebacker Khaleke Hudson at No. 97.
As far as a top-100 goes, it’s hard to complain here at the end of November. Adding two linemen to pair with the returning Jonah Williams and Trey Hopkins at center could fully turn the unit around in time.
But the real treasure of the class here is obviously Burrow, the man who so far has completed 78.9 of his passes for 4,000-plus yards with 41 touchdowns against just six interceptions. In the wake of the Tua Tagovailoa injury he’s the top choice, so fans would be wise to start getting to know him now.
As far as mocks go, it’s hard to complain about hitting on the team’s biggest needs at what early in the process here seems to be good value.
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