After writing that the Bengals have no luck drafting running backs in the first two rounds, we're going to do the only sensible thing next. Talk about a running back that the Bengals could draft in the first two rounds of the 2011 NFL Draft.
Tell me, what do you know of Mikel Leshoure? No cheating. No Googling, Yahooing or Binging (that sounded... inappropriate). No Wiki, call-a-friend or tweeting. Times up. Many of you already know, but of those of you that do not, Leshoure is a six-foot, 230-pound running back out of Illinois.
The Bengals need a feature back that can be a workhorse for the team with Cedric Benson entering free agency. Sure, they could bring him back. That is if they're confident he'll return when the league and union resolve their differences and agree on a Collective Bargaining Agreement. In the meantime, the team can take control over their own fate at the position, rather than waiting on a running back that showed some decline in 2010, reaching an age when good running backs suddenly become average to mediocre.
National Football Post's Wes Bunting writes that Leshoure:
...possesses a thick, compact frame, runs behind his pads and exhibits impressive power through contact. However, what makes him so intriguing is his overall body control, balance and short-area quickness for a guy his size. Leshoure has the ability to create for himself inside, set up blocks at the line of scrimmage and quickly accelerate into the open field. Now, much like Ingram, Leshoure isn’t a burner by any stretch.
Bunting writes that the Bengals could be one possible destination in the second round, with New Orleans and New England possibly taking him late in the first round.