Do we need to take a guard in the first round?

listing successful players drafted in the latter rounds, there is a list of busts. So stop with the what’s better taking where. Just address the goddamn needs in order and we’ll be fine.

None higher than 15th. – Shows what the league thinks of them.

He will be gone, but he will instantly be a pro bowl caliber lineman. After that, I can wait for a guard in the second. I think if your drafting anyone in the first they need to be special, and have pro bowl potential. Richardson at running back, after that its equal with the rest, decastro at guard, equal after that. So if they are both gone I think both should wait.

If I was in charge and DeCastro was there at 17, the commissioner would say, “The Cincinnati Bengals are on the cl… The Cincinnati Bengals select David DeCastro.” If DeCastro is gone (which is most likely) I’m not reaching on interior OL because there will be some good ones available in the second and third. Hell, I’ve seen some people have Osemele falling to our pick in the second. I’m fine waiting, but if DeCastro is there I want him because he’s just that good.

Please please please digest this information and THINK about it. Don’t forget that Boling is a 4th round pick and could turn into a very good starter.

And Bernard Scott is a 6th round pick and could turn into a very good starter.

And the relevance of Boling coming from the 4th round is….?

So us saying people like konz and Glenn are not first round talents means nothing. If the bengals front office say Glenn is a perenial probowl guard, who am I to argue.

rather, don’t overreach in the 1st round. if decastro is gone by 17, is there really another G in the draft worthy of a 1st round pick? not sold on glenn in the 1st. mike adams or peter konz are worth the 21st pick but do they help the address the bengal’s need at guard?

Of minor improvement from our scouts, I still don’t trust them. If Boling ends up becoming something eventually, great, but I have zero faith in our coaching staff to make him get there, and he looked like putrid garbage on the field this year. Maybe he’ll improve in time. Maybe the lockout truly did hold him back and with a proper offseason he’ll be better. Maybe… but I’m not holding my breath.

We have a desperate need for an improvement on the OL. Especially the interior, but even the exterior could use improvement too. Still, I think Cook is probably “good enough” if he has some better guards beside him, and Whit is also at least “good enough” if he doesn’t have to worry about Livings and can concentrate only on the DE/OLB he is primarily responsible for. Jury’s still out on Smith. Maybe he just needs help from a back/TE to chip on every play. Maybe something else is the answer. Not sure. Either way, the OTs are at least adequate, and that’s about 10 times better than the putrid garbage we have at the OG position.

Now I don’t mind if we wait to draft our new guards in the 2nd or 3rd, because we could still get some pretty good guys at that point, but until and unless our scouts make immense improvement, I don’t want to trust the health and development of Andy to some 4th or 5th round flyer who might pan out… but might be even worse than Livings. Livings is bad enough, we don’t need anybody even worse.

Plus remember that Andy is only 6’2". He’s not Drew’s height, but he’s not THAT much taller. When you don’t have a 6’6"+ QB, it really helps to have at least “very good” guards in front of him, because he simply needs a bit more space to work with, and he needs his guards to be able to keep the pass rushers’ hands down as much as possible. It’s even more important if you want to run a west-coast-based offense, because you need to make sure you aren’t letting a free rusher get in Andy’s face in 1.2 seconds.

So while we don’t need a truly elite guard tandem the way Drew does, we do need to make major improvements in that area. And until/unless our scouts prove they’ve gone from idiots to geniuses overnight, I have zero faith in their ability to find that improvement in the 4th-7th rounds.

…but based on our team needs, the draft class, and the FAs available/likely to be pursued I’d say that guard is more of a priority than RB.

We have two servicable RBs under contract, both which many fans believe should get more playing time; there will be no shortage of RB FAs available who could be part of a RBBC tandem; there are, according to most scouting reports/drafts, several RBs which will most likely be drafted in the 2-3 rounds which could develop into solid RBs; Trent Richardson seems to be the only RB which is considered to be a “sure thing” first rounder and he will most likely be gone.

The Bengals offensive line is thin (we have some guys that have marginal talent or are aging/injury prone); the FA market is thin; there are several O-lineman expected to go in the first round that could be immediate starters.

I don’t think the Bengals should “reach” for anyone, but it just seems quite likely that the Bengals needs combined with what will most assuredly be available will coincide.