Bengals NFL Draft Order: Cincinnati learns where it will pick in the first round after 9-8 finish

It certainly ended in an exciting way, but the Cincinnati Bengals' season did came to a conclusion this past weekend. The Bengals wrapped up a second consecutive 9-8 season without a playoff appearance to show for it. 

The Bengals were the only club to finish 9-8 on the year, which makes it really easy to place them in the updated 2025 NFL Draft order. The first 18 spots have been decided now that the 14-team playoff bracket has settled into reality.

Let's see what pick the Bengals own control of with the regular season now in the past.

Bengals lock in 17th overall pick in 2025 NFL Draft

Five consecutive victories to close out the season nearly bumped the Bengals all the way down to where they selected in the first round of last year's draft. Only one other non-playoff team owns a lower pick in the first round. Here are the top 18 picks, via Tankathon.com:

1. Tennessee Titans
2. Cleveland Browns
3. New York Giants
4. New England Patriots 
5. Jacksonville Jaguars
6. Las Vegas Raiders
7. New York Jets 
8. Carolina Panthers 
9. New Orleans Saints
10. Chicago Bears
11. San Francisco 49ers
12. Dallas Cowboys
13. Miami Dolphins
14. Indianapolis Colts
15. Atlanta Falcons
16. Arizona Cardinals
17. Cincinnati Bengals
18. Seattle Seahawks

17th overall is one spot higher than where the Bengals picked right tackle Amarius Mims last year. Mims ended up playing 15 games, starting 13 of them, and finished with one of the highest Pass Block Efficiency scores out of all rookie tackles.

The Bengals have picked 17th overall four times in their history, with two from this century.

2012: CB Dre Kirkpatrick
2005: ED David Pollack
1998: LB Brian Simmons
1987: ED Jason Buck 

Kirkpatrick spent eight of his 10 seasons in Cincinnati and earned a five-year, $52.5 million contract in 2017 after establishing himself as a starter. Pollack had an extremely promising rookie season but suffered a career-ending injury early on in his second year. Simmons was an eight-year starter during his nine-year run in Cincinnati and was voted in as one of the franchise's 50 greatest players in 2017. Buck played four years with the Bengals before playing his last three with Washington.

Recent 17th overall draft picks

It's been over a decade since the Bengals picked 17th overall, but the recent history of the pick is mostly positive.