With the 177 pick of the 2008 NFL Draft, the Bengals select App. State S Corey Lynch

Go here for the Day 2 Open Thread. Talk about the pick here.

The Bengals addressed one of their needs in the secondary drafting a safety to compliment the two safeties drafted last season. We still expect the Bengals to pick up another cornerback and that should satisfy the secondary unit for the draft.

ESPN documented him and talked well of him. He had 24 interceptions and over 50 pass break ups. He's the guy that blocked the Michigan kick to win the game.

Check out this lengthy Lynch high light film

The Draftguys TV profile Lynch.

Scouts Inc. says he doesn't have "great natural ability" and projects to be a seventh-round pick or an undrafted free agent. He does have a "knack for blocking kicks on special teams".

Strengths: Physical, shows adequate upper body strength and can reroute receivers. Gets good knee bend in backpedal and shows adequate burst getting out of it. Appears to read routes well and shows good awareness in zone coverage. Aggressive and jumps routes. Has excellent ball skills and is a playmaker. Plays with a mean streak and fills hard when reads run. Has active hands and flashes the ability to shed blocks. Plays with a good motor and is a sideline-to-sideline run defender. Wraps up and is a reliable open field tackler. Blocked three kicks last year, blocked three kicks in 2006 and can contribute on special teams.

Weaknesses: Stiff in the hips when forced to turn and run, doesn't have the second gear or long arms to recover when gets caught in a trail position and can get beat deep when left on an island. Adequate but not great quickness and is going to have some problems matching up with slot receivers in man coverage. Tall enough to bulk up frame a bit but lacks prototypical size and can get engulfed when lines up in the box. Fractured left elbow in during the second game of the 2004-season, had two screws inserted during surgery to repair the elbow and took a medical red-shirt that year. Fractured right arm during the 2006-season and missed two games. Played at a small school and there is some concern about ability to adjust to the speed of the game at the NFL level.

Overall: Lynch arrived at Appalachian State in 2003 and was named a started by the second game of his freshman year. In his first three full seasons (2003, '05-06), he appeared in 39 games (38 starts) and compiled 234 tackles (7.5 for losses), 17 interceptions, 17 pass breakups, three forced fumbles, three blocked kicks and two touchdowns (one returned block, one returned fumble). In 2004, he started the first two games (13 tackles, one interception, one forced fumble) before suffering a season-ending elbow injury that led to surgery and a medical redshirt year. As a senior in 2007, Lynch started all 15 games at free safety and was selected as the Southern Conference's Defensive Player of the Year. He finished the season with 111 tackles (three for losses), one forced fumble, 11 pass breakups, six interceptions (including one he returned for a touchdown) and three blocked kicks. Lynch also missed two games in 2006 because of a right ulnar fracture. Lynch is a small-school prospect who has some durability concerns and doesn't have great natural ability so he projects as a seventh round pick or rookie free agent. However, Lynch could prove to be a great value there because he's a tough run defender, he's a playmaker in coverage and he's shown a knack for blocking kicks on special teams.

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