Bengals make stops at Central Michigan and Oregon pro days

The Bengals’ scouts and coaches are making their way around the country to take a look at the talent in this year’s NFL Draft.

Two of their most recent stops have been at Central Michigan and Oregon. Both of these schools have players at several positions that could pique the Bengals’ interest.

Oregon

The biggest name that the Bengals probably went to Oregon for was the offensive tackle Tyrell Crosby. Even though the Bengals traded for Cordy Glenn, it hasn’t seemed to slow down their pursuit of due diligence on the offensive tackles available in this year’s draft.

Crosby only lifted at the pro day. He only put up 17 reps, which is fairly disappointing considering how strength is viewed as one of the positives with him. He gets criticized for his athleticism as well, but at least he still has the ideal size at 6’5” and 325 pounds.

The other offensive linemen that likely caught Cincinnati’s eye was interior offensive linemen Doug Brenner. He put up 225 pounds 30 times at the pro day. He underwent hip surgery last season that cost him his final year at Oregon.

He didn’t do anymore of the combine drills, but the Bengals are known for loving the bench press for evaluating offensive linemen. Russell Bodine is the prime example with his 42 reps of 225 pounds from the Scouting Combine leading to the Bengals trading up to draft him.

The Pro Day’s biggest winner was Arrion Springs, who didn’t getting an invite to the combine. He ran a 4.47 40-yard dash that really shocked most of the scouts. If the Bengals manage to break the trend of drafting a corner in the 20’s this year, Springs could have worked his way onto the team’s radar as a decent sized corner who has enough speed.

Other testing numbers for Oregon’s pro day is as follows:

Central Michigan

The biggest name at Central Michigan right now is tight end Tyler Conklin. He had a great pro day by showing off his pass catching skills. He didn’t do any of the combine drills over again though, which is fine because he finished near the top in most of those.

The Bengals re-signing Tyler Eifert may take them out of the market for this deep tight end draft. Although, Tyler Kroft’s contract will also be expiring after this season as well, so Conklin may be a good pickup later in the draft.

Joe Ostman could also provide a late round target for the Bengals if they want to try and add more depth to their defensive end group after losing Chris Smith to the Browns. He is a super raw prospect, but he tested very well athletically. He showed good strength, but he will need sometime to learn how to really play the position in the NFL.

It could be a good idea to replace Smith as Michael Johnson is getting up there in age and his contract expires after this season.