Bengals News (4/27): Costly upgrades

Paul Brown Stadium upgrades: Here's what it will cost
County officials were briefed on the capital assessment of the stadium done by Los Angeles-based architecture and design firm, Gensler Sports, Tuesday at a 1 p.m. Hamilton County Commissioners meeting. Commissioners said this is the first time they had seen the full report and at this point, no action is being recommended by the county.

Kaiir Elam is the move for Bengals in latest expert mock draft
That’s why the position dominates the list of 15 players we love in the first round for the Bengals and even in our final seven-round mock draft, corner is the first thing the team does after the opening round.

Dave Lapham Reveals His First Round Prediction for Cincinnati Bengals in 2022 NFL Draft
"My first would be Andrew Booth if he's there and then Kaiir Elam if Andrew Booth's not," Lapham told Dan Hoard. "If they're both gone, I don't know what I'd do at that point. I'm not sure I'd stay with the corner position at that time. I think I might move on."

Bengals: 15 players we love for the team in 1st round of 2022 draft
Below, we’ll outline 15 players we’d love to see the Bengals take. They fit the team’s usual profile — productive but with huge upside from proven winners. They also mostly fit the team’s major needs while slotting nicely into best-player available status.

Defense-heavy draft on tap for Bengals?
Taylor said Monday he was ready to get started with the 2022 NFL Draft, but glad to have a few more days to run through the final details of the organization’s draft board. The draft begins with the first round Thursday at 8 p.m. and continues Friday with the second and third rounds, followed by the final four rounds Saturday afternoon.

John Stofa, first player in Bengals history, dies at 79
The Bengals didn’t start to play until the 1968 season, but team founder Paul Brown acquired the rights to Stofa in a trade with the Dolphins at the end of the 1967 season. Brown had always thought highly of Stofa as an intelligent player and believed having a quarterback who could learn the offense quickly enough to have it figured out by the time the Bengals started practice was essential.

Bengals’ draft work on CBs has experts narrowing down predictions
Since William Jackson in 2016 though, the Bengals have shied away from that reputation. Based on the team’s pre-draft work this year and how the draft board might fall, experts have continued to point out the team might go back in that direction.

Cincinnati Bengals Meet With Multiple Wide Receivers Ahead of 2022 NFL Draft
FryFogle is a quality route runner, but doesn't have a ton of special teams experience, which is concerning for a late-round wide receiver. He finished with 46 receptions for 512 yards and one touchdown for the Hoosiers last season.

Around the league

Charles Davis 2022 NFL mock draft 3.0: Drake London first of seven WRs selected
The 2022 NFL Draft is tantalizingly close. But before the next crop of players enters the league, I wanted to present one final mock draft -- one last attempt at projecting how the picks in Round 1 will play out.

2022 NFL Draft: Don't overthink Aidan Hutchinson; don't overlook Malik Willis and Kenny Pickett
Honestly, this is the most wide-open NFL draft I can remember. The questions begin right at the top: Who's going No. 1 overall? And the grand uncertainty around the quarterbacks -- how they stack up and where they'll end up -- adds the ultimate layer of suspense to this genuine reality TV show.

Running back Melvin Gordon re-signing with Broncos for one year, up to $5M
As part of a formidable one-two RB punch with Javonte Williams in 2021, Gordon produced 918 yards rushing and eight touchdowns on 203 carries. He'll also get the opportunity to share the backfield again with quarterback Russell Wilson, one of the Broncos' newest additions and the biggest offseason acquisition for the franchise since Peyton Manning. Wilson and Gordon were teammates in college at Wisconsin for a year.

Bucky Brooks 2022 NFL mock draft 4.0: Steelers take Malik Willis; Vikings land Jameson Williams
With the 2022 NFL Draft just around the corner, teams are beginning to hone in on their draft-day wish lists. While it is impossible to figure out what teams are really thinking, here is my final attempt to predict the first round on Thursday: