The Cincinnati Bengals have landed themselves in a unique position this offseason by filling their biggest needs with bargain free agents including former Baltimore Ravens free safety Geno Stone and former New England Patriots offensive tackle Trent Brown. Typically, when a team lands in a position like that, they can get really creative during the draft because their entire goal becomes maximizing talent rather than filling any potential gaps.
Cincinnati Bengals Could Trade Down for Additional Draft Capital
Just a few days ahead of this season’s NFL Draft, there is still wild speculation as to what the organization is going to do with the 18th overall pick. There have already been rumored trades for additional first-round picks with both the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Arizona Cardinals but the fun thing to do at this point is to hypothesize as to exactly what the team is going to do.
One theory that has been postulated is that the team could trade back in this draft and add improved selections in the later rounds. Usually, the teams that make that move are unsure of who to draft and would prefer to make an easier decision with a later selection, and given the lack of major holes on this roster, that might be the perfect choice.
One trade that has been thrown out has been Cincinnati trading away the 18th overall pick and their third-round pick to the Green Bay Packers for the 25th overall pick and an additional second-round pick. Given that Cincinnati has thrown out several players that might fit the franchise’s long-term plans, that might be a solid idea and let the cards land where they land. That would open up the Packers to landing either an elite offensive tackle or a talented wide receiver to give budding quarterback Jordan Love a little bit more help.
Given the absurd depth of offensive tackles in this draft, that would still allow for Cincinnati to select a top-level talent to protect superstar quarterback Joe Burrow. On top of that, the team could use that additional second-round pick to both draft University of Texas nose tackle T’Vondre Sweat to replace outgoing star D.J. Reader and a talented wide receiver to replace talented receiver Tee Higgins next season. That way, the organization can aptly fill three long-term positional gaps in one draft and be ready for the long-term battle for the AFC.
If the organization plays its cards right with this trade, it could dramatically bolster both the offensive and defensive lines while also solving their long-term issue at the wide receiver position.
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