Cincinnati Bengals: 2019 draft class still considered ‘average’ by PFF
The Cincinnati Bengals had 10 draft picks in the 2019 NFL Draft and it was Zac Taylor’s first draft as the Bengals’ head coach. Michael Renner of Pro Football Focus gave the Bengals an ‘average’ score at the time and stuck to the ‘average’ mark in his regrading of the 2019 draft class.
Renner wrote:
"Jonah Williams proved his worth with a 75.8 pass-blocking grade in Year 2 after missing his rookie season with a shoulder injury. That’s where the positives end for the Bengals’ 2019 class, though. Second-round tight end Drew Sample barely sees the field, while third-round linebacker Germaine Pratt has earned grades of 51.0 and 41.5 in his two years as a starter."
It’s hard to argue with this assessment.
I will say that while Sample might not have seen the field much in his first two years, that’s about to change, as he’ll be the TE1 heading into the 2021 season. The Bengals figured he wouldn’t be an immediate starter when they took him and they had a chance to see what he could do when C.J. Uzomah went down with an injury last season.
Pratt definitely could have played better in his first two years, but third time’s a charm, right? That’s what fans are hoping for, but the sad reality is that the Bengals need to add a veteran linebacker despite spending third-round picks on linebackers in two of the last three drafts.
The Cincinnati Bengals’ 2019 draft class hasn’t made a huge impression.
If Williams is the only one that ‘hits’ out of this draft class, the Bengals won’t be too upset about that. They’d have found their left tackle of the future if that is the case and that’s easily one of the most important positions in the NFL.
While the Bengals’ 2019 draft class didn’t impress much, the 2020 class received high remarks from Renner when he recently re-graded them. That draft class gave the Bengals their franchise quarterback and star wide receiver though, so that’s not shocking. They landed five total starters in that draft.
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With two years in the books for the Bengals’ 2019 draft class, the turnout hasn’t been great so far. If nothing else, Jonah Williams will hopefully emerge as a top-tier left tackle and that can be the positive taken away from this draft. I do have hope that Sample will step up and be a serviceable tight end this year but we’ll have to wait and see.