Bengals News (5/3): From a scout’s perspective

A Scout's First Impression Of Bengals Draft: 'We Let Our Board Speak To Us'
If I knew before how this draft played out, I would have been very happy with it. Are there other positions we would have liked to have addressed? Yeah. Absolutely. Sometimes that's just not how it shakes out. There are guys as you work through the process that get eliminated for medical reasons, character reasons. As you get the coaches in the process, they don't see a great vision for the player from a scheme perspective.

Bengals post-draft 53-player roster projection
The Bengals added eight players to their roster in the recently-completed NFL Draft and by the time the team's rookie mini-camp is held on May 12 it will add roughly a dozen more undrafted free agents. While the roster will likely change a little by the time training camp starts in July here is a stab at a final 53-player roster projection as it stands now (how many will likely be kept at a position group in parentheses):

Bengals WR Tee Higgins gets started on recruiting Isaiah Simmons early
As a result, Simmons still has one year left on his current rookie deal. But that didn’t stop Higgins from taking to Twitter and suggesting that in a year’s time, Simmons should come to the Queen City, going back to his roots.

Former Cincinnati Bengals QB Brandon Allen is Signing With San Francisco 49ers
Allen completed 61.5% of his passes in 12 career games for Cincinnati over the past three seasons, throwing for 1,096 yards, seven touchdowns and four interceptions.

Cincinnati Bengals Defensive End Joseph Ossai on How 2022 Season Ended: 'We Lost, That's Motivation Enough'
"Not that play, but just losing in general, because as I was saying earlier, what I did before doesn't matter," Ossai said. "What I did during the play, it doesn't matter. What matters is, did we win or lose? And we lost, so that's motivation enough, not the fact that I messed it up. Obviously, that's extra motivation, but we lost that game. And that's motivation enough we need to get back there. We will get back there. I have full confidence in our potential, in this team's potential. We're gonna be great. We're gonna be dope."

Bengals DE Joseph Ossai gives injury updates
Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Joseph Ossai tore his labrum in the second matchup against the Cleveland Browns in the 2022 season and had surgery in February to repair it.

Around the league

Prisco's NFL Draft 2023 grades for all 32 teams: Cowboys, Eagles among A's; Chiefs, 49ers receive poor marks
In this draft, which was considered a weak draft at the top, there are four teams that stood out, four teams that earned 'A' grades from me. They were the Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys, Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles. I loved what those teams did. That might not synch up with other graders, but those are my teams that did really well over three days of drafting.

2023 NFL Draft: Ranking favorite picks in every round
There were so many excellent selections, though, that I limited myself to three in each round. While compiling the list, I discovered I had picked representatives from each position group. So I threw in one extra player (in Round 2) to finish off a "starting 22" -- just as I did in last year's edition.

NFL Power Rankings: Who's up/down after the draft?
There was loads of speculation entering the draft that Cincinnati would make a move to replace Joe Mixon, the veteran running back who's coming off a down season and is currently facing criminal charges for an off-field incident. Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs -- the top running backs in this draft class -- each came off the board long before Cincinnati came on the clock Thursday night, removing any Mixon-related drama in Round 1. The team did select Illinois RB Chase Brown in the fifth round on Saturday, but the day ended with head coach Zac Taylor throwing his support behind his incumbent starter. "His future is here with the team," Taylor said. "I like Joe Mixon."

NFC East draft grades: Rich Eagles got richer, while Giants found value in need areas
Why provide instant grades on the selections of prospects who have yet to take an NFL snap? Well, you're reading this, aren't you? Considering the makeup of every roster and the factors surrounding each pick, Eric Edholm executes a division-by-division assessment of the 2023 NFL Draft. Keep in mind that these grades are based on draft hauls alone -- picks traded for veteran players were not taken into account. Below is the NFC East report card.