Bengals debates will explode from 2026 NFL Draft pro player comparisons

It's an absolutely make-or-break offseason for the Cincinnati Bengals, and one way to appease Joe Burrow is to, you know, crush the 2026 NFL Draft with multiple picks who can contribute right away.

Too often in recent years, Cincinnati settles on depth acquisitions or developmental pet projects rather than productive players who can hit the ground running in the pros. Intentional or not, it's time to change things up, especially after the debacle of 2024 and bad early returns on last year's rookie class.

The 2026 NFL Draft profiles authored annually by Lance Zierlein are starting to drop as of Tuesday, or at least this is the first day I'm noticing them. You'd be shocked how often Bengals past and present are featured — and how high the praise is for some of their top draft targets re: pro player comparisons.

Fernando Mendoza compared to Joe Burrow & more Bengals pro player comparisons from NFL.com's 2026 NFL Draft profile series

Yeah, Lance Zierlein really went there. I mean I get it. A lightly recruited college quarterback who few believed in had to bide his time for years for the perfect opportunity. Then, he rose to the occasion, won the Heisman Trophy, national championship, and got drafted No. 1 overall.

That's how things played out for Joe Burrow once he transferred from Ohio State to LSU. That's what is likely to happen to Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza, who's all but a lock to hear his name called first on behalf of the Las Vegas Raiders on draft night.

But to compare Mendoza and Burrow as players feels egregious to me. Zierlein tells on himself in his own words:

"Mendoza is big and tough but moves around the pocket with heavy shoes and limited escapability, which could invite excessive hits on Sundays. He can make life easier on his receivers and his play-caller, but above-average pass protection feels like a non-negotiable. He’s still young with football to learn and adversity to face, but his character, competitiveness and rapid ascension make it easier to project he will be a very good starter within his first three seasons."

So like...how does he compare to Joe Burrow again?

Burrow entered the NFL with horrendous pass protection. The Bengals have notoriously had one of the worst offensive lines in the league across his entire career. He dragged a scrub-tastic starting five to Super Bowl LVI, and another gaggle of backups to the AFC Championship Game the following postseason.

When has Joe Shiesty ever been described as having "heavy shoes and limited escapability" too? If there's a better QB in the sport at navigating muddy pockets, please point me in his direction.

Mendoza is indeed a bit lead-footed in the pocket. He also played in a gimmicky RPO-heavy system, where a good chunk of his production came from back-shoulder throws (admittedly impressive) but a bunch of free-access throws to the perimeter as well. Burrow hailed from a pro-style offense dialed up by new Buffalo Bills head coach Joe Brady.

In other words, Burrow entered the NFL on another planet from Mendoza in terms of football IQ.

At the risk of letting the Burrow-Mendoza comp dominate this whole article, check out these other parallels Zierlein drew between past Bengals and incoming 2026 prospects:

• Ohio State DT Kayden McDonald — D.J. Reader
• Auburn EDGE Keldric Faulk — Carlos Dunlap

I've advocated fro the Bengals to reunite with Reader in free agency, as have several other prominent Who Dey Heads you've probably seen on the social medias. I've also mocked McDonald to Cincinnati, but in a trade-down scenario, rather than with the 10th overall pick.

McDonald is an exceptional run stopper. Don't know if I fully agree with the Reader comp since D.J. has more juice as a pass rusher. Still cool to see a Bengals stud used as a point of comparison for a likely first-round selection.

As for Keldric Faulk, well, he gives me a lot of Shemar Stewart vibes. Carlos Dunlap was a two-time Pro Bowler in Cincinnati back when the Pro Bowl used to mean something. That's a generous ceiling for Faulk, who many have as a Day 1 guy, whereas I rank him as the 95th overall prospect as of now.

The outside-the-box 2026 NFL Draft targets for Bengals have the most tantalizing pro player comparisons of all

Going to pose some questions of understandable concern to get the ball rolling on this topic.

Should the Bengals really mess with adding a WR3 with the 10th overall pick when they already have Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins? Aren't they playing with fire if they draft another linebacker early on, after the disasters that were Demetrius Knight Jr. and Barrett Carter last year?

Why on Earth would Cincinnati draft a running back in the top 10 when Chase Brown is a proven RB1? And how does it make any sense whatsoever to even consider a tight end at No. 10?

My answers to all those questions: Because in my latest big board update (not yet public, sneak preview), I have all the players I've alluded to in the top 11. All of them would realistically be available when the Bengals go on the clock in April.

I humbly present my big board rankings in parentheses, alongside Zierlein's pro player comps below:

• Jeremyiah Love, RB, Notre Dame (1) — Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions
• Makai Lemon, WR, USC (5) — Amon-Ra St. Brown, Detroit Lions
• Kenyon Sadiq, TE, Oregon (8) — Trey McBride, Arizona Cardinals
• Sonny Styles, LB, Ohio State (9) — Fred Warner, San Francisco 49ers

Folks, let me Jon Bernthal tell you something right now.

Forget everyone else in the first round. If the Bengals come away with any of these four dudes, and they come close to the pro player comparisons Zierlein has laid out, we should throw a party for Duke Tobin and the scouting department.

Jahmyr Gibbs averages nearly six yards per touch and has 49 total TDs in as many career games — with only 24 starts. He and David Montgomery transformed the Lions offense into a juggernaut.

Gibbs' teammate, Amon-Ra St. Brown, is a USC product like Makai Lemon who fell all the way to the fourth round. St. Brown is a two-time first-team All-Pro. Settled for second-team honors this season, mostly because the Lions missed the playoffs. Was still top-five in receptions and yards, and tied for second in TD catches.

Fred Warner is a four-time. First-team. All Pro. Is that decent company for Sonny Styles to keep? Zierlein isn't just making that comp willy-nilly. It's insulting to Warner if Styles isn't worthy. But he is. Another draft guru thinks so, too!

Oh, and guess what Trey McBride did out in Arizona this past year? While the Cardinals kept drifting toward pro football obscurity, McBride set the single-season record for receptions by a tight end with 126.

I know it's in vogue to mock Clemson defensive tackle Peter Woods to the Bengals at 10, or even Florida nose tackle Caleb Banks. Or one of the EDGE defenders. or Ohio State safety Caleb Downs.

I'm just saying. Don't ignore offense. And don't ignore Sonny Styles just because Duke Tobin botched the Knight and Carter picks in 2025.