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While Bengals fans and restauranteurs are ready to crown Joe Burrow the King of Cincinnati, one former coach doesn’t isn’t quite prepared.
Paul Alexander, who was the Bengals’ offensive line coach for 23 years, thinks there is another candidate or two that the Bengals are interested in.
HOLD ON ... don’t write in JOE BURROW as the 1st pick of the NFL DRAFT quite yet. There’s another choice ... JUSTIN HERBERT who is in the mix (along with CHASE YOUNG). As a 23 year Bengal ... I’m a pretty solid source. pic.twitter.com/AyYcUh3sZq
— Paul Alexander (@CoachPaulAlex) January 24, 2020
According to Alexander, Justin Herbert and Chase Young are in the running for the first overall pick.
Despite being supremely talented, Young still has an outside shot at being drafted by the Bengals, since they are in more desperate need of a quarterback than they are a defensive end.
Herbert makes more sense, since Zac Taylor and the coaching staff are working with him in the Senior Bowl.
How reliable is this intel? If you ask Alexander, he’s “a pretty solid source.” He did coach for the Bengals for nearly a quarter of a century, so he knows the Brown family well. However, he has never coached for Taylor or coached with anyone else of the current staff.
Keep in mind that this is pure conjecture from Alexander. No one in the organization leaked it to him. At best, it’s speculation from someone well acquainted with the organization. At worst, it’s just another person’s opinon.