Will this draft bring the Cincinnati Bengals a franchise quarterback?

The dream scenarios of Kyler Murray falling to the Bengals at pick number eleven are all but impossible. However, Murray being drafted early may still help the Bengals find their future franchise QB. If rumors are true and the Cardinals end up taking Murray, that means Arizona’s first round pick from last season Josh Rosen would be available via trade.

Zac Taylor has publicly supported Andy Dalton and said he is the guy. However, Josh Rosen may fit exactly what the Bengals need. He is a young who will be on only the second year of his rookie contract. This would allow the Bengals to do something similar to what the Rams did, and use the money saved by having a quarterback on a rookie contract to improve other areas of the team.

There is always a great debate among fans when the topic of Andy Dalton comes up. The Bengals waited a few years too long to make a change at head coach. It would be smart to at least look at possible ways to improve at quarterback and not wait a few years too long to make a change there too. If they wait and Dalton still struggles to get the team over the hump with Taylor as the head coach, the franchise will just keep spinning in circles. The opportunity to take the next step could be now.

At first glance, Rosen’s rookie stats are not impressive at all. He had a completion percentage of 55% and had more interceptions than touchdowns. It is important to look at the big picture with him though. He is extremely talented and would still be one of the top three quarterbacks in this year’s draft. He didn’t really have much talent around him at all last year. He also had a first time head coach with a defensive background. As we have seen with Jared Goff, a young quarterback can improve quickly with a young offensive minded coach.

When you dig deeper and look at some of Rosen’s highlights from his first start via the NFL YouTube channel, you see a lot of things he did well. He has good pocket awareness and was able to slide to create passing lanes for himself. He also kept his eyes downfield, even when there was a rush around him and made some impressive long throws, even though his receivers did him no favors at times.  As we have seen with Dalton through the years, he struggles in that area. Rosen has also shown a very strong arm with good accuracy on deep passes, which is something the Bengals could use with their current receivers. Dalton too often leads his targets to the sidelines on these sort of throws.

Josh Rosen still has the potential to be a top quarterback in the NFL. With him possibly now being available for trade, the Bengals could land their future franchise quarterback that way. He probably could be had without giving up a huge number of picks because teams will know the Cardinals would have no realistic choice but to trade him. Giving up a mid-round pick this year, and one higher pick in next year’s draft might satisfy Arizona. That is not that steep of a price to pay for a possible franchise quarterback.

It will be interesting to see what exactly the asking price and demand around the league is for Rosen. If the Cardinals do indeed draft Murray, the asking price may be higher, but this is a move the Bengals should take a serious look at making. Cincinnati has already shown they are willing to take some risks by hiring a young coaching staff with great potential. Now, they have a chance to take a shot at a young quarterback with all the potential in the world as well as a year of NFL starting experience under his belt.

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