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Todd McShay of ESPN just released his first mock draft of this draft cycle, something that’s always fun to look forward to and check out.
And his pick for the Cincinnati Bengals is sure to make fans happy.
The Bengals need help on the offensive line, particularly the interior offensive line. Fortunately for them, McShay’s mock allowed the best center in the draft to fall to them at No. 16, Iowa’s Tyler Linderbaum:
No-brainer here. No quarterback has been sacked more than Joe Burrow (41), which of course isn’t what you want to see for your second-year franchise QB who already has a knee injury as a pro. Linderbaum anchors well and would help take the Bengals’ interior line from among the NFL’s worst to one of its best within a few years. Plus, he has good range at the second level, which would open things up more for running back Joe Mixon.
Even if he is a bit light at just 290 pounds, Linderbaum can move people around. Current starting center Trey Hopkins started this year very slow after coming back from a knee injury and right guard remains a question mark, too.
This is almost the perfect pick for the Bengals if he is available at their pick. Linderbaum will probably end up as a top-20 pick in April.
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