3 positions Bengals could take in first round of 2024 NFL Draft (and 2 to avoid)
- Focus on: OT, WR, DL
- Avoid: IOL, RB
We're still over four months away from the 2024 NFL Draft, but it is never too early to speculate. Hundreds of mock drafts are being created and posted every day, hype ramping up as the regular season draws to a close and the teams that are in and out (specifically out) of the playoff race become clearer.
Just a few weeks ago, the Bengals were looking like they were going to be on the outside looking in for the remainder of the season, as they had dropped three games in a row-- two to divisional opponents-- and, more importantly, lost Joe Burrow for the rest of the season. This led to Jake Browning, a guy who hadn't started a game in the NFL up until Week 12 of this year, to take over the reins. All of this sounds like a recipe for a disastrous end to the season, right?
Well, as it turns out, no! We actually have some hope heading into the final four games of the season. After losing his first start to the Steelers and inspiring little hope in fans (to be fair, it was his first career start against a borderline top-10 defense), Browning and the team as a whole have bounced back and rattled off two back-to-back impressive wins against a division leader in the Jaguars and a wild card team in the Colts.
Still, the focus of this article is on the draft. While it is unclear where the Bengals will be picking-- as they still have a solid chance to make the playoffs, although they don't control their own destiny-- as of now they'd have the middle-of-the-pack pick, which is still high enough to grab an impressive name off the board. That being said, this position could very easily change over the next few weeks, it could be higher or lower, we'll have to see.
Anyway, here are three positions the Bengals could take in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, as well as two they should avoid.