Grading every pick the Bengals made in the 2023 NFL Draft

R2: P60 - DJ Turner, CB

At 60, the Bengals once again were faced with none of the elite tight ends, save for Darnell Washington (who had fallen on injury concerns). The weak tackle class had been picked over and those remaining had question marks.

Zack Charbonnet -- a favorite second-round mock of the fans -- was off the board. The Bengals were expected to go CB in first or second anyway and they had DJ Turner, who could have snuck in the back of the first round, still available.

Easy call. DJ Turner has speed to burn being the fastest player in the draft with a 4.26 second 40. That speed translates to the field also. While not having the prototypical length that the Bengals usually go for, his tape and elite change of direction won the day. The Bengals now have a world class track team masquerading as a defensive secondary.

"DJ Turner has the makings of a Top-5 corner in the 2023 NFL Draft class. He ran the fastest 40-time at the NFL Combine at 4.26 seconds. According to PFF, he allowed only 22 receptions for 225 yards and two touchdowns in the 2021 regular season, making him one of the best cover corners in college football."

-  Trevor Woods and Daniel Plocher

Link to the original story can be found here.

From a team fit perspective you can never have too many corners. He will come in and play right away and is insurance in case Chidobe Awuzie needs additional time to recover. From a 2025 perspective this makes sense in case the Bengals cannot afford to reup Awuzie and would make a nice potentially elite pairing with Cam Tyler-Britt.

Grade: A