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The Bengals are one of the four teams that met with Ohio State OL Malcolm Pridgeon during his pro day.
Ohio State Guard/Tackle Malcolm Pridgeon is a unique prospect. Played guard at Ohio State but has experience as a tackle in JUCO. Standing at 6’7” he could likely play both and provide depth there for teams. Met with #Bucs, #Falcons, #Steelers, and #Bengals at his Pro Day.
— Zach Hicks (@ZachHicks2) March 27, 2019
Pridgeon is not a big name coming out of the draft, partly because Ohio State’s line was disappointing in 2018. But as an individual prospect, Pridgeon stands up on his own.
After earning a five-star rating as a junior college prospect, Pridgeon started every game of his junior and senior year and lead the team in snaps from scrimmage in 2018 with 1,170. He was also third in the Big Ten conference in fewest sacks allowed in 2018, despite quaterback Dwayne Haskins’ school-record 561 passing attempts.
Pridgeon is 6’7” and 310 lbs, so he has the size to play either tackle or guard. He played guard at OSU, but did log some snaps at tackle at Nassau Community College.
The Bengals could draft Pridgeon on day three of the draft as insurance or a backup. The Bengals don’t currently have a backup tackle, so that’s most likely what they would be after. They already have five guards, so if you throw Pridgeon into the mix, you would figure that two or three of them would be sent packing after training camp.
However, the Bengals do value versatility on their offensive line, which Pridgeon offers as a backup. The Bengals also love linemen who are able to stay on the field, so Pridgeon’s 28-game streak probably sticks out to the scouting department.
Who knows, maybe he could even give Bobby Hart a run for his money. We wouldn’t mind that at all.