The Bengals need to find some help for Joe Burrow in the 2021 NFL Draft. Look for Cincinnati to use their first round pick to protect their franchise QB.
Joe Burrow showed more than enough in his rookie season to be considered the future of the Bengals franchise. Now it’s imperative for Cincinnati’s front office to give their young quarterback that kind of supporting talent he needs to thrive.
Given the franchise’s general aversion to spending big in free agency, it’s safe to assume that most of the roster construction will happen during the draft. That’s not a bad plan for a team that’s starting to assemble an intriguing young corps. It’s unlikely that the Bengals can jump all the way into the playoffs next season, but continuing to head in that direction is a reasonable expectation for Zac Taylor and his coaching staff.
The fact that Burrow’s rookie season ended due to injury was not an unfortunate accident. It was a predictable outcome given the team’s inability to block anyone up front. Expect the Bengals to address that critical weakness with the No. 5 overall pick.
The Bengals will be sweating bullets in the hopes that Sewell will fall to them at No. 5. He’s unquestionably the top tackle in this draft class. Landing him in the first round would be a dream scenario for Cincinnati.
That sets the Bengals up as the rare team that should be hoping to see an early run on quarterbacks. The more signal callers that go off the board ahead of them the more likely it becomes that Sewell falls into their lap. Landing an immediate upgrade at left tackle would be a boon to Burrow’s hopes of taking a step forward in 2021.