2018 NFL Draft: Cincinnati Bengals 7-round mock
By Conor Dorney
After spending their first two selections upgrading the offensive line, the Bengals can now afford to go with more of a “best player available” approach in the later rounds. In need of an upgrade at inside linebacker, Cincy turns to Penn State tackling machine Jason Cabinda.
Cabinda registered 80+ tackles in each of his final three seasons as a Nittany Lion and solidified his draft standing with a good performance in the Shrine Game. Bengals coaches were part of the East team’s coaching staff during the week, which should certainly help their familiarity with Cabinda’s abilities.
Cabinda is a leader, extremely aggressive and loves contact, consistently finding ways to disrupt rush lanes. He’s not the most athletic guy in the world, but his nose for finding the football will at the very least make him a solid contributor on special teams if he can’t crack the starting lineup at linebacker right away.
If the stars align with the 12th pick in the first round, I could see Cincinnati going with Tremaine Edmunds or Rashaan Evans instead of on the offensive line. If both players are off the board, however, expect them to address the position later on with a player that has a history of good production at a big program.