| RD(PK) | PLAYER | POS | SCHOOL |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1(24) | William Jackson III | CB | Houston |
| 2(24) | Tyler Boyd | WR | Pittsburgh |
| 3(24) | Nick Vigil | ILB | Utah State |
| 4(24) | Andrew Billings | DT | Baylor |
| 5(22) | Christian Westerman | OG | Arizona State |
| 6(24) | Cody Core | WR | Ole Miss |
| 7(24) | Clayton Fejedelem | S | Illinois |
2016 Outlook
Coaching Staff
HC: Marvin Lewis
OC: Ken Zampese
DC: Paul Guenther
ST: Darrin Simmons
Projected Depth Chart
Offense
QB. Andy Dalton, AJ McCarron
RB. Jeremy Hill, Giovani Bernard
FB. Ryan Hewitt
WR. A.J. Green, Brandon Tate
WR. Brandon LaFell, James Wright
WR. Tyler Boyd
TE. Tyler Eifert, Tyler Kroft
LT. Andrew Whitworth, Jake Fisher
LG. Clint Boling, Christian Westerman
C. Russell Bodine, TJ Johnson
RG. Kevin Zeitler, Trey Hopkins
RT. Cedric Ogbuehi, Eric Winston
Defense
DE. Carlos Dunlap, Margus Hunt
DT. Geno Atkins, Brandon Thompson
DT. Domata Peko, Pat Sims
DE. Michael Johnson, Will Clarke
OLB. Karlos Dansby, PJ Dawson
MLB. Rey Maualuga, Trevor Roach
OLB. Vontaze Burfict, Vincent Ray
CB. Adam Jones, William Jackson
SS. Shawn Williams, Floyd Raven
FS. George Iloka, Derron Smith
CB. Dre Kirkpatrick, Chris Lewis-Harris
NB. Darqueze Dennard
Special Teams
K. Mike Nugent
P. Kevin Huber
Breakdown
Offense:
The Bengals lost some key receivers to free agency, but after a strong draft I think they’ll ultimately be fine. A.J. Green still remains as 1 of the elite receivers in the game and Tyler Eifert emerged as an elite tight end. To replace Jones and Sanu at receiver the team drafted Tyler Body in the 2nd round, who should be good enough to come in an make an intimidate impact. Running back Giovanni Bernard will also contribute in the receiving game as a dual threat option. Jeremy Hill will start at RB and brings power and size but must be better than he was in 2015. The Bengals offensive line was 1 of the best in 2015 and should be again this year. They have plenty of talent at every position. Andrew Whitworth, the starting LT, is the best of the bunch and 1 of the best in the entire league at what he does. He’s a complete player that is excellent at run and pass blocking. Next to him, at LG will be Clint Boling, who has become a quality starting guard in this league. Cincy has 1 of the strongest center’s in the NFL in Russell Bodine, who though he’s incredibly inconsistent with his overall play, is just plays downright nasty at times. RG Kevin Zeiter is the best of the interior bunch. The former 1st-rounder has live up to where he was picked and is 1 of the more talented guards in this league. At RT, it’ll be addition by subtraction with Andre Smith now gone, the team can turn the reigns over to 2015 1st-round pick Cedric Ogbuehi. That’s more than enough talent for QB Andy Dalton to operate with and I expect another good season from him. I think he might come back to Earth a little, but overall I see Dalton playing at a Pro Bowl level. He really appeared to have figured it out last season and has all the tools to succeed with this supporting cast.
Defense:
The only significant loss to the Bengals defense was safety Reggie Nelson. CB Leon Hall also is gone, but he was on the decline anyway. The Bengals should be an elite defensive unit again under Marvin Lewis. Up front, they bring back 1 of the best front 4s in the league completely intact. Dunlap and Johnson are 1 of the best end duos and 1 of the biggest as well in the league. Atkins is an absolute monster in the interior and the best player on the Bengals defense. At linebacker Burfict is the star of the group. He has to get his attitude and temperament issues under control but there is no doubt about his talent. Maualuga has been a good starting MLB for years now in Cincy and will continue to man the job. And coming over from the Browns, Dansby should be rejuvenated now that he’s once again playing for a winner. The secondary still has plenty of talent to overcome the losses to free agency. We still haven’t really seen what 2014 1st-round pick Darqueze Dennard can do, who should finally get his shot this year and the team drafted William Jackson III, who might have to wait his turn and be the number 4 corner for now. Adam “Pacman” Jones is the best of the bunch and should be the team’s best corner again and Dre Kirkpatrick will start opposite him. George Iloka now takes over as the veteran of the safety group with Nelson out and he’s a huge player at 6’4, 225 pounds. 2013 3rd-round pick Shawn Williams looks to take over at the FS spot. He showed good sings in limited play last season with 5 pass deflections and 2 interceptions and looks to have an even bigger impact with more snaps.
