The Cincinnati Bengals will be on the clock with the 28th overall pick when the 2023 NFL Draft is taking place in Kansas City at the end of April. The Bengals have put themselves in great shape ahead of the draft and might be able to take the best available player by that point.
Draft analysts have continued to link the Bengals to taking a tight end in the first round though and it makes sense why. Hayden Hurst signed with the Panthers and as of this writing, the starting tight end for the Bengals if the season started right now would be Devin Asiasi. That's obviously not going to be the case when the 2023 season rolls around.
Tight end was a popular position to link to the Bengals in these mock drafts so let's see who these mock draft writers have landing in Cincinnati.
Bengals mock draft roundup
Charles Davis 2023 NFL mock draft 1.0: Panthers pick C.J. Stroud at No. 1; Vikings take Will Levis
Davis is getting Bengals fans hopes up with his prediction of Michael Mayer of Notre Dame falling to Cincinnati late in the first round. Mayer attended high school in Kentucky so Bengals fans are familiar with him and would love to see him catching passes from Joe Burrow for the foreseeable future.
"Mayer does everything well and is extremely dependable. Bengals QB Joe Burrow values and utilizes the TE position."Charles Davis
Pete Prisco 2023 NFL Mock Draft 1.0: QBs fly off board as four go in top 5; Eagles reload on defense
Prisco has Dalton Kincaid heading to Cincinnati and this has been a very popular name for the Bengals in mock drafts. Kincaid will probably be on the board late in the first round and would fit into the Bengals' offense well.
"With Hayden Hurst gone, they have to get a replacement. Dalton Kincaid is an outstanding receiving tight end, which Joe Burrow needs in this offense."Pete Prisco
2023 NFL Mock Draft
Here's yet another mock draft that has the Bengals selecting Kincaid. Typically, unless it's the first or second overall pick, when people keep linking a guy to a prospect, it doesn't end up going that way. If Kincaid ends up being the pick though, Bengals fans will have done their homework on the guy.
"Cincinnati was interested in Trey McBride in last year's draft, so perhaps they'll use an early pick on a tight end to replace Hayden Hurst. Dalton Kincaid is an athletic receiver who runs good routes."Walter Football