The dust has hardly settled on the 2024 NFL Draft and fans and analysts alike have already fired up the 2025 NFL Mock Draft machines! 2024 is set to be a pivotal one for the Cincinnati Bengals as they look to take advantage of the Joe Burrow-led Super Bowl window while still having most of the core still intact.
2024 is the last year before Burrow’s cap hit jumps to over $46 million and continues to climb to a peak of over $68 million in 2029. If they’re going to continue to be among the league’s elite, the franchise needs to draft well and take advantage of the cheap rookie contracts.
Bengals Projected to Add Weapon in Way-Too-Early 2025 NFL Mock Drafts
High Risk, High Reward in 2024
There have been a myriad of responses and breakdowns of the Bengals 2024 NFL Draft class. They kicked off the draft with the selection of Amrius Mims, an athletic tackle out of Georgia but one who only started eight games in college.
The second-round selection was a bit more safe with Kris Jenkins out of Michigan. Jenkins looks like he could be an immediate contributor on the defensive line. The risk lies within two of the team’s picks in the next two rounds.
Jermaine Burton was a late-bloomer at Alabama, generally not what the Bengals target at wide receiver. However, he already looks prepared for AFC North football, if you know, you know. He has some off-the-field concerns but with how hellbent Zac Taylor has been at reforming the Bengals’ culture, Burton must have impressed in meetings.
Another risk was Erick All. Selecting a tight end out of Iowa is usually a safe pick but All has had a pair of serious injuries toward the end of his career, most notably the torn ACL in 2023. Despite the injury, All led the Iowa offense in receiving despite missing nearly half the year. It’s both a testament to his impact as well as how awful that offense was.
The Bengals are not afraid to take swings. Now that they are entering the expensive years of Burrow’s career, they’re going to have to hit on as many picks as possible.
Bengals Often Linked to Big 10 Running Back
Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Devin Brown (33) hands off to Quinshon Judkins (1) for the scarlet team during the first half of the LifeSports spring football game at Ohio Stadium on Saturday.
Without Googling, when was the last time the Bengals picked a first-round running back? In its history, the Bengals have used four first-round picks on running backs:
- Archie Griffin (1976)
- Charles Alexander (1979)
- Ki-Jana Carter (1995)
- Chris Perry (2004)
After trading away Joe Mixon, the franchise’s third-best back in terms of rushing yards and second-best in touchdowns, the team signed Zack Moss. Moss spent the 2023 season with the Indianapolis Colts and put up a career year with 794 yards and five touchdowns. Behind him is 2023 fifth-round selection, Chase Brown. In limited playing time, Brown has looked solid and accounted for just 179 yards and has yet to find paydirt on the ground. He did add 156 yards receiving with a touchdown.
With Moss on a one-year deal, the Bengals could look to upgrade the position as soon as next year.
According to NFLMockDraftDatabase, the leading contender at this point in the process — and, yes, it is incredibly early on in the process —Quinshon Judkins is projected as the next first-round selection in Cincinnati.
What They’re Saying
With a selection as potentially controversial as picking a running back — and that running back having yet taken a snap with his current team —there has to be some justification.
Richie Bradshaw of Sports Illustrated:
The Bengals will sneak by this season with a committee approach to their running game, but they should be ecstatic if Judkins is available for them. Judkins is already a household name in college football after pacing the SEC in rushing yards as a freshman with Ole Miss. Now at Ohio State, Judkins has a chance to go down as one of the best backs of the 2020s with another elite season.
Rudy Gray of LWOSports:
Cincinnati traded away franchise running back Joe Mixon to the Texans and brought in Zack Moss, who had a career year with the Colts in 2023. Still, it is unproven whether Moss or 2023 fifth-rounder Chase Brown can carry the rock for the Bengals. Selecting Judkins allows the Bengals a fresh star in the backfield to lean on during their Super Bowl window.
Blake Brockermeyer of 247Sports:
Our first running back off the board, Quinshon Judkins won’t have to go far from his new digs in Columbus to Cincy, a year after transferring from Ole Miss. Judkins was Ole Miss’s most critical piece of an explosive offense and figures to be the bell cow for another loaded offense at Ohio State. Sources I’ve talked to say he is turning heads early and often as he is not only a nice blend of speed and power but is also being used in the passing game. The Bengals moved on from Joe Mixon this offseason.
Judkins was featured in two Bleacher Report mocks by Zach Buckley and Jake Rill but they did not expound on the pick. Josh Hill of ThePewterPlank (Tampa Bay Buccaneers FanSided) also mocked Judkins to Cincinnati.
Judkins in College
Quinshon Judkins has been one of the top running backs in the nation in his two years in the Ole Miss system. As a true freshman, he amassed an impressive 1,567 yards and 16 touchdowns. He led the SEC in both yards and touchdowns and was top-10 nationally for both in 2022. He earned First-Team All-SEC honors to go with his Freshman All-American selection.
As a sophomore, Judkins continued his top-tier play, adding 1,158 yards and 15 touchdowns. He finished with the second-most yards in the SEC while leading the way in touchdowns yet again. Once again, he was a First-Team All-SEC selection.
After the 2023 season, Judkins elected to jump into the transfer portal and found a new home at Ohio State. By all accounts, Judkins is set to have a big year in a, now, Chip Kelly-led offense. Kelly has been known for producing some solid NFL-ready talents at the position.
He will be sharing carries with TreVeyon Henderson, another potential top-four running back in this class.
It’s obnoxiously early in the 2025 NFL Mock Draft process but the idea of adding Judkins to the Bengals offense is intriguing.
