It's reportedly time to concede defeat on Bengals' 2026 NFL Draft strategy

Expectations are low across most of Cincinnati Bengals fandom regarding their approach to the first round of any given NFL Draft. If it's not a stupid-easy pick like Joe Burrow or Ja'Marr Chase, Cincinnati's brass is bound to, well, do something stupid.

This is like that scene in 50 First Dates where Adam Sandler is cry-signing The Beach Boys hit, "Wouldn't It Be Nice" alone on his little boat.

It's the same old song for the Bengals. The vicious cycle of sadness continues. Or at least that's the latest word on the NFL street about who they're destined to draft with the 10th overall pick this year.

ESPN reports Bengals are zeroing in on cornerback in first round of NFL Draft

Four-letter network expert Matt Miller contributed his intel to Cincinnati's section on the latest pre-draft rumors from around the league. Might want to sit down for this one, y'all:

"The Bengals are in prime position to address their cornerback need at No. 10. Mansoor Delane (LSU) and Jermod McCoy (Tennessee) sit atop the CB board, and it's likely one will be there when Cincinnati picks. After signing [Boye] Mafe, it sounds like secondary is the team's Round 1 priority."

Cue the meme of SpongeBob that says, "Ight Imma head out."

I had big dreams for Cincinnati's offseason. A couple of my proposed free-agent signings like Boye Mafe and Bryan Cook came true. Doesn't feel like Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles is in the cards at No. 10, barring a trade up, which would signal a genuine all-in move.

Stripe Hype went soft-viral this week for an epic Dexter Lawrence-Sonny Styles draft trade haul:

Now? Reality is sinking in two weeks out from draft night. Dexter Lawrence isn't coming to Cincinnati, no matter how feasible it is on paper. Nor is Sonny Styles. We're seriously about to roll with Barrett Carter and Demetrius Knight Jr. as our starting linebackers in Week 1, barring the acquisition of some bargain-bin free agent.

...And whether it's Mansoor Delane or Jermod McCoy at Pick 10 matters not. It's the principle of the pick that grinds my gears to no end.

Feels like I bring this up every other day, but just in case anyone needs a refresher, the Bengals routinely punt on instant-impact players in the first round in favor of succession plans. Or surplus selections that make little sense.

Let's recap what's happened since Chase was drafted some half-decade ago. Depressing it's been that long:

• 2022 — Dax Hill drafted 31st overall to replace Jessie Bates at free safety
• 2023 — Myles Murphy drafted 28th overall to replace Sam Hubbard at defensive end
• 2024 — Amarius Mims drafted 18th overall to sit behind right tackle Trent Brown
• 2025 — Shemar Stewart drafted 17th overall to replace Trey Hendrickson

Hill has played three different positions; Cincinnati still hasn't found a viable Bates successor. Hubbard retired after the 2024 campaign; Murphy was abysmal for two and a half seasons until the end of last year.

Mims is solid, but he was only thrust into duty as a rookie because Brown got injured early on. Brown just started down the stretch for the Houston Texans. You know, a playoff team. So was that a great use of premium draft capital? One could argue that it wasn't.

And my lord, has Shemar Stewart looked dreadful to date. Yes, he was plagued by injuries, but he also only had 4.5 sacks in three years at Texas A&M. If Murphy flirted with Bruno Caboclo, "he's two years away from being two years away" status, when on Earth can we expect the light to flick on for Stewart?

That brings us to this year, where Mansoor Delane or Jermod McCoy will be drafted 10th overall to replace Hill or DJ Turner.

Sorry to say, Bengals faithful, but this is our destiny. Even though DJ and Dax share an agent, one of them is liable to skip town next offseason. If by some miracle Cincinnati extends both of them, then the Delane/McCoy first-round investment makes zero sense.

Couldn't be more over it. Another double middle fingers to the fanbase from ownership and the front office if this comes to pass.