The Cincinnati Bengals Select New OL at No. 18; Their History Drafting the Position Group

Despite a spotty recent history when it comes to drafting offensive linemen, some of the best players in Cincinnati Bengals history have been drafted at that position.

Offensive tackle Anthony Muñoz, who is widely considered the best player in Bengals history as well as one of the best tackles in the history of the NFL, was taken with the No. 3 overall pick in the 1980 NFL Draft. Muñoz is the only player the Bengals selected in the first round that ended up making it into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

In 1996, the Bengals selected another all-time great at the tackle position with the selection of Willie Anderson at the No. 10 overall spot. Anderson was a first-team All-Pro selection three times, a second-team All-Pro selection once and a Pro Bowl selection four times.

The Bengals also took elite offensive linemen like center Dave Rimington, guard Kevin Zeitler and tackle Andrew Whitworth in the draft. While they were all elite at their positions, none of them were quite as good as Muñoz or Anderson.

The Cincinnati Bengals have not had success drafting offensive linemen in recent years

The Cincinnati Bengals have struggled when it comes to drafting offensive linemen in recent years. One of their biggest blunders, Ohio State Buckeyes center Billy Price, played his last game in the league at 28-years-old for the Arizona Cardinals in 2022.

Price, who was taken with the No. 21 pick in the 2018 draft, played for the Bengals for three years before drifting around the league. Price was taken before wide receivers D.J. Moore and Calvin Ridley, quarterback Lamar Jackson, linebacker Fred Warner, tackles Jordan Mailata and Orlando Brown Jr. and tight end Mark Andrews.

Price is one of three players selected in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft that are now out of the league. Another miss at the offensive line position from the Bengals came when they selected tackle Jonah Williams just a year later.

Williams requested a trade before the 2023 season and is now a member of the Arizona Cardinals. He wasn’t a complete bust, but he never lived up to the hype of the No. 11 overall pick.

Williams was selected before defensive tackles Christian Wilkins, Dexter Lawrence and Jeffrey Simmons, guard Chris Lindstrom, running back Josh Jacobs, wide receivers Deebo Samuel, D.K. Metcalf, Terry McLaurin and A.J. Brown as well as several solid offensive linemen such as Kaleb McGary, Jawaan Taylor and Elgton Jenkins.

Where will new Cincinnati Bengals tackle Amarius Mims fall on the spectrum of Bengals OL draft picks?

The talent of newly acquired Cincinnati Bengals tackle Amarius Mims is undeniable, but the one red flag that allowed him to drop to the No. 18 spot is his injury history.

Mims is a staggering 6-foot-8, 340-pound tackle who ran a 5.07 40-yard dash. Despite his absurd athleticism for his size, he only played in seven games in 2023 with six starts. He had an ankle injury and had tightrope surgery before he returned for the last three games of the regular season.

The talent with Mims is there, but with only eight starts in his college career, there are still many question marks. Bengals head coach Zac Taylor explained the need to protect quarterback Joe Burrow in an article from Sports Illustrated.

“Anytime you’ve got a quarterback you want to protect and you can acquire the type of lineman that we’ve been able to add into our building with the free agent additions of Ted (Karras) and (Alex) Cappa and drafting Cordell (Volson) and in free agency getting Orlando (Brown Jr.)and Trent (Brown) and now drafting another one,” Taylor said. “We feel really good about how we built that line up and able to protect Joe and run the football and do all the things that allow us to be a successful offense.”

Mims will come into an offensive tackle room that already lacks space. Tackles Trent Brown and Orlando Brown Jr. are both 6-foot-8 and will be able to teach Mims how to properly utilize his size as a massive tackle in the NFL.