Bengals 7 round 2021 mock draft with Sewell, Chase off the board

The Bengals grab some more pass rush help here by taking Jonathon Cooper, their second Ohio State Buckeye of the draft. He checks a lot of the boxes Zac Taylor has shown to look for in the prospects he drafts: leadership, intelligence, and experience.

Speaking of experience, Cooper has plenty of it. He’s been logging snaps in Columbus since 2016. Again, for a Bengals team that needs instant help in terms of getting after the quarterback, that bodes well.

Cooper hasn’t been a guy to rack up a ton of sacks, never getting more than 3.5 in a season. That’s partially due to the deep rotation Ohio State utilizes in their defense. The Bengals would be wise to use him in a similar way. If he can be apart of the rotation, provide high effort plays, and come away with 3-4 sacks a year, that should be considered a success.

With Cooper, Ossai, the retention of Carl Lawson, and the presence of Sam Hubbard, the Bengals would have four high motor guys that you’ve got to feel extremely comfortable with being in the game on third down. That kind of rotation will keep them fresh until the fourth quarter, allowing them to close out games defensively, something Cincinnati hasn’t been able to do often in recent years.