“Who was your favorite Bengals undrafted free agent?”

November 24, 2012; Tuscaloosa, AL, USA; Auburn Tigers running back Onterio McCalebb (23) carries the ball against Alabama Crimson Tide defensive back Ranzell Watkins (21) during the first quarter at Bryant Denny Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Blake Meek

Auburn running back/cornerback Onterio McCalebb. He was the fastest man in the draft, but is as skinny as JJ Evans. Speed kills, and this guy can be utilized on kick returns and some specialty packages. Get him to the outside and let him fly. Jay Gruden has a lot of options, and I hope he’s scheming as I write this.

Dustin Meritt

SIU linebacker Jayson DiManche has me excited, explosive player off the edge and in pursuit.  He has a real good chance of making the club with a solid camp and preseason. It’s not a LB core without at least one  UDFA making the roster.

Oklahoma State K/P Quinn Sharp  also has me excited of the possibility of moving on from the off injured Mike Nugent. Sharp was very effective as both a kicker and punter, he also led the nation in touchbacks.

Sean McMahon

Jordan Campbell is my favorite, and I could see him also making this team and starting. He is a hard worker, great work ethic, never gives up, a leader, has passion, great instincts, big hitter, his only downside is that he played in a smaller school after USC and Louisville. He is going to surprise a lot of people during training camp, and I could honestly see him ending up being the defense’s leader they’ve been looking for for years. If you don’t know Jordan Campbell, go YouTube him, he has quite a few videos and you will be impressed.

Nov 11, 2012; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Andrew Hawkins (16) celebrates with guard Trevor Robinson (66) after scoring a touchdown in the first quarter against the New York Giants at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

Much of the Bengals draft grades have focused around the top four picks and their overall immediate utility, but Cincinnati’s real step forward was projecting considerable depth at every position, including some that many seem more concrete than others.  With the resigning of Andre Smith to right tackle, the gut feeling in greater Bengaldom is that the offensive line is now fully intact and ready for the season.  That may be a bit premature of a statement.

In January 2013, PFF and cincyjungle.com dished out the final grades for the Bengals offensive line.  Andrew Whitworth and Andre Smith received scores of +22.8 and +29.2 respectively.  Rookie Kevin Zeitler notched a +13.3 score, and second year guard Clint Boling received +7.0, however; both struggled with their run blocking contributions towards the overall grade.  Nonetheless, center was by far the weakest position on the line with undrafted rookie Trevor Robinson having the highest score (-1.8) between himself and veterans Kyle Cook (-6.6) and Jeff Faine (-13.0).  More startling is that earlier in the spring of 2012, PFF had already ranked Cook the 4^th worst center in the NFL over the past 3 seasons.  While Robinson is a bit of a fan favorite and shows a lot of promise, it’s important to remember that he was brought in as a G/C hybrid for malleable depth on the roster, not to take over as the starter.  The Bengals like to 9-to-10 offensive line men on the final 53-man roster so justifying Robinson as dual-hatted or even a pure back-up guard very easy to swallow, considering that trifecta of talent in Boling, Zeilter and returning veteran Travelle Wharton.

Apr 26, 2013; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals first round draft pick Tyler Eifert and head coach Marvin Lewis pose for a photo during a press conference at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Frank Victores-USA TODAY Sports

When talking about Notre Dame rookie tight end Tyler Eifert, it’s been mostly about how he’ll upgrade the Cincinnati Bengals offense. Others have pointed out how he’ll make the enigmatic Jermaine Gresham perform better, or risk losing his starting job. The most common belief is he’ll improve the red zone offense and help increase the 3rd-down conversion rate after the Bengals finished among the league’s worst in both of those categories.

But it’s not all about what Eifert brings to the Bengals. As Chris Burke of Sports Illustrated points out, Eifert should see his level of play and ability to showcase his maximum potential increase dramatically after going from an average Notre Dame offense in college to a much better situation with the Bengals:

QB Andy Dalton, for starters, represents a substantial upgrade over Notre Dame starter Everett Golson, who led the Irish to the BCS title game but completed just 58 percent of his passes and often utilized a run-first mentality. Eifert also now gets to play alongside proven tight end Jermaine Gresham, a legitimate No. 1 tight end and producer of 64 catches last season; the next most productive TE behind Eifert (50 catches) on the Notre Dame roster last season was Troy Niklas, with five grabs. Then there is also the presence of wide receiver A.J. Green. He alone often commands attention from multiple defenders, clearing space on the rest of the field.

All of that should work to Eifert’s advantage in his rookie season.

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