Tag: Cincinnati Bengals

Bengals meet with Washington WR before draft

Could this WR be a weapon the Bengals go after in the draft?

The Cincinnati Bengals have been very good at drafting wide receivers in the recent past and just over a week before the 2024 NFL draft, they met with another.

According to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, on Wednesday the Bengals met with Washington wide receiver Jalen McMillan, who also had visits with many other teams including, the Kansas City Chiefs, Arizona Cardinals, Jacksonville Jaguars and Miami Dolphins.

He is projected to be a Day 2 draft pick and has been hosted for private workouts by multiple teams as well.

In his final three years with the Huskies, when he got almost all of his playing time, he had 163 receptions for 2,127 yards and 17 touchdowns in 35 games played, 45 of those catches, 559 yards and five touchdowns coming in 11 games this season.

Two of his five touchdowns came in the College Football Playoff, scoring on the biggest stage in college football when he went to the national championship game, where his team would lose to Michigan.

In case Tee Higgins is gone after this season, the Bengals could be looking to add to the depth of the wide receiver room, and McMillan would certainly help.

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Trent Brown offers insight into training before first season with Bengals

Some interesting comments from Trent Brown.

The Cincinnati Bengals didn’t bring in offensive tackle Trent Brown in free agency simply because he and Orlando Brown Jr. combine to make the NFL’s biggest tackle combo in front of Joe Burrow.

But it sure doesn’t hurt either.

That size has helped Brown become one of the league’s best pass protectors when he’s on the field and he’s working to amplify that during training this offseason.

“I’m a really natural pass protector. Naturally gifted and from playing basketball and other positions. Going back to when I was a rookie up to now, I’ve never been a guy that just gets beat. You can get that from my peers or the tape,” Brown said, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “I was just fine-tuning. Making small tweaks here and there.”

Brown’s big hurdler over the last few years has been remaining healthy enough to stay on the field.

But it’s telling that the Bengals and/or Brown aren’t working overtime to change up his game. He’s here to protect Burrow and make sure the franchise quarterback can stay on the field, too.

The Bengals will likely draft for the long-term behind Brown early in the draft soon, but that ability as a pass protector makes him a lock to open the season as the starter.

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Expert talks dream scenario for Bengals in 2024 NFL draft

And it concerns one of the most popular targets for the Bengals.

The Cincinnati Bengals landing Georgia tight end Brock Bowers in the 2024 NFL draft continues to be one of the most commonly talked about draft points leaguewide.

Next up is NFL Media’s Daniel Jeremiah during his annual conference call suggesting the idea as the lone “throw a parade’ scenario” despite how unlikely it seems.

Jeremiah’s comments on the idea:

In terms of the Cincinnati Bengals and everything going perfect for them, where they’re picking at 18, obviously the ‘”throw a parade” scenario is if somehow Brock Bowers got down there. I don’t think it’ll happen, but hey, every now and then you get one thing like this that happens, and the guy slides down.

Bowers is the runaway top tight end in the class and indeed, he’d slot incredibly well alongside Mike Gesicki in an offense moving on from Tyler Boyd and perhaps Tee Higgins one year from now.

That said, taking Bowers would ask the Bengals to sacrifice major needs in the trenches on both sides of the ball.

It would also require him still being there at No. 18, which at this point, seems nearly impossible unless there’s a major run on quarterbacks — which happens in our latest mock draft.

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Bengals have one of NFL’s easiest schedules next year, per one metric

It all comes down to Joe Burrow’s health, of course.

The Cincinnati Bengals have a tough schedule in 2024, as expected.

Granted, there was some hope from fans that things might be easier than anticipated because the team technically finished in last place in the AFC North last season and will face a last-place schedule.

Compared to the rest of the league via just one metric, the Bengals indeed slot with one of the easier schedules.

Warren Sharp recently broke down next year’s schedule rankings based on odds out of Las Vegas and the Bengals come away with the sixth-easiest schedule.

Here’s why that’s important, with Sharp explaining how his methods have worked out in the past for teams he ranks:

Of the 15 teams that actually had the easiest 2023 schedules, 10 went to the playoffs (Cowboys, Packers, Texans, Bills, Dolphins, Buccaneers, Eagles, Lions, 49ers, and Chiefs) with 9-of-15 going over their win total

This all really boils down to — of course — Joe Burrow staying healthy. But the numbers show that if he does, the opportunity to exploit a schedule that’s easier than it should be and get back to the postseason is right there.

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Bengals hosted Arkansas DL Trajan Jeffcoat on pre-draft visit

Yet another defender to keep an eye on for the Bengals during the draft.

The Cincinnati Bengals have put a number of defensive players through the paces ahead of the 2024 NFL draft.

One of those is Arkansas edge rusher Trajan Jeffcoat, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2.

Jeffcoat is a sort of standard Zac Taylor target at this point, given his status as a team captain and the high-effort film. Said effort could be something the Bengals will be more than happy to employ in a rotation on the edge alongside the likes of depth options such as Jeff Gunter.

In short, Jeffcoat is one of those prospects to keep an eye on Day 2 and beyond.

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Bengals take unexpected target in expert’s new mock draft

This is a new one for a Bengals mock draft.

It’s mock draft season for at least another week and the Cincinnati Bengals continue to be one of the more interesting teams in the first round.

One thing we’ve yet to see mock drafts do for the Bengals, though, is have them select Georgia wideout Ladd McConkey at No. 18 in the first round.

That first comes from CBS Sports’ Will Brinson:

Letting Tee Higgins walk while replacing him in the draft the same year would fit the Bengals’ modus operandi.

In the process, the Bengals pass on some notables such as popular theory Byron Murphy, a defensive line prospect who could help right away.

McConkey isn’t a bad prospect nor target for the Bengals, though he might better fit the Tyler Boyd role in the slot — a role going to Mike Gesicki and a possible rookie.

Then again, the Bengals do like to address needs one year in advance (like when they drafted Dax Hill ahead of Jessie Bates’ departure). If so, an early wideout might be the move if the team anticipates Tee Higgins leaving after playing next season on the franchise tag.

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Bengals meeting with Dominican basketball player before draft

Here’s an interesting draft story around the Bengals.

The Cincinnati Bengals are leaving no stone unturned before the NFL draft next weekend.

Now they have a pre-draft visit with a basketball player from the Dominican Republic who has never played a single game of football in his life at any level of the game.

Bayron Matos, who is 6-7 and 313 pounds, moved to the United States at 16 years old to play basketball and ended up at New Mexico before transferring to South Florida, playing in 48 basketball games.

He walked on to the South Florida football team for the 2022 season but never got any action.

He participated in the NFL’s International Player Pathway program, where NFL teams were impressed enough with him that there was talk that he might actually be drafted due to his size and athleticism.

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Bengals put Kentucky TE through workouts

An offensive weapon to keep in mind for the Bengals during the draft.

The Cincinnati Bengals are putting another tight end through some workouts with just over a week to go until the 2024 NFL draft.

The most recent tight end is Brenden Bates from Kentucky, who they are putting through workouts on Tuesday, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2. He also has an interview with the San Francisco 49ers and is receiving interest from several other teams.

Bates was at Kentucky for six seasons but didn’t get significant playing time offensively until his fourth year. He finished his college career with 57 games played, 26 receptions for 272 yards and two touchdowns.

He obviously isn’t much of a pass catcher, but he is a proven blocker in the running game and wouldn’t cost a high draft pick.

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Bengals meet with Missouri OT before upcoming draft

More offensive line prospects of note for the Bengals.

The Cincinnati Bengals are meeting with another offensive tackle before the draft, which is in just over a week.

The most recent visit is with Javon Foster, who they are using a top 30 visit on, according to Ryan Fowler of The Draft Network.

Foster is projected to go on the third day of the draft, in the fourth or fifth round, and Fowler said he’s also set to meet with the Kansas City Chiefs.

In his fifth season playing with the Tigers, he was named a first-team All-SEC player by AP and the coaches and AP also named him a third-team All-American.

He spent most of his time in college at left tackle, and while he wouldn’t be needed right away, it’s never a bad thing to build depth on the offensive line.

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Dax Hill appreciates Bengals’ communication as he faces position shift

Dax Hill is happy about how the Bengals have handled the big change.

Cincinnati Bengals defensive back Dax Hill says the team has been very open with him about his positional future next season after additions to the roster.

Hill says that coaches made sure to loop him in on the thought process inside Paycor Stadium during the signings of Vonn Bell and Geno Stone in free agency.

“I appreciate that, just having that conversation before things turned out and just hearing them out on why they did the things they did,” Hill said, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “Whatever happened, I can’t control that. I’m just going to put my best foot forward … I’m not really stressing out about what’s to come. I’ve been through so much the first two years, it’s nothing that I’m not used to.”

Despite the strong communication, Hill does admit that things are still in flux as spring workouts get underway: “We’ll see how things go, but everything’s kind of just up in the air, we’ll see how things go and just play it from there. Whatever they ask of me, whatever that is, I’m going do it. But I mean, whatever the position that I’ll be in, I’m going to give it my all.”

Hill played just over 100 snaps as a rookie while waiting for a chance to take over for Jessie Bates. He did last year and flashed with solid production, but a transition year for the secondary and communication issues (among notable problems) led to the unit pacing the league in explosive plays permitted.

Next year, Stone and Bell figure to get notable playing time at safety, leaving Hill for a possible transition to corner, where he could serve as the long-term option behind Mike Hilton.

Either way, strong communication and Hill’s willingness to play anywhere has seemingly helped all involved clear the first hurdle of this change.

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