Plan A for the Cincinnati Bengals tomorrow night is to secure a right tackle of the future. Those plans might also be thwarted by the teams in front of them.
NFL Draft insider and expert analyst Daniel Jeremiah recently shared that interest in teams trading up in the first round for an offensive tackle is strong around the league.
The top of the OT class being strong is nothing new, but multiple teams expressing interest in trading up for the group is fresh info. The Bengals being in the middle of the potential chaos puts them at a crossroads.
Cincinnati wants to take a tackle early in this draft, preferably with the 18th pick. If they watch four, five, maybe even six tackles go off the board to teams already in front of them or jumping in front of them, that would sting similar to watching Frank Ragnow go off the board right before taking Billy Price.
The alternative would be the Bengals being one of the teams interested in moving up, and there seems to be some weight behind that.
ESPN's Dan Graziano reported Wednesday morning that the Bengals are a team to watch for trading up for a tackle due to their interest in former Alabama right tackle JC Latham.
"The Bengals at No. 18 are also worth watching for a potential trade-up. They like Alabama offensive tackle JC Latham a lot and could stand to bolster the line, but they may need to move up to get someone in that tier. Otherwise, watch for Cincinnati to bolster the interior of its defensive line following the offseason departure of defensive tackle DJ Reader via free agency." - ESPN's Dan Graziano
The Bengals haven't traded up in the first round of the draft in almost 30 years when they did so for running back Ki-Jana Carter, who never amounted to his potential after suffering a major injury right before his rookie season. The disaster has haunted the front office from moving up in the first round.
Fear of missing out on a franchise tackle in a Super Bowl window would be the push they need to disrupt precedent.
While I think the Bengals trading up at some point in the draft is probable, doing so in the first round is far less likely, no matter how desperate they are for a tackle.
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