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The NFL Draft Countdown is where we take a closer look at an NFL franchise to see what its transactions have been and what its needs are.
Franchise
- Draft Position: 21
- 2009 Season Result: 10-6 (1st in AFC North; Lost in Wild Card Round)
- 2009 Head Coach: Marvin Lewis
- 2010 Head Coach: Marvin Lewis (56-55; 0-2)
Key Transactions
- RB Larry Johnson (to WAS)
- WR Antonio Bryant (from TB)
Draft Picks
- 1-21
- 2-22
- 3-20
- 3-32
- 4-22
- 4-33
- 5-21
- 6-22
- 7-21
Analysis & Outlook
Last season, Cincinnati swept the AFC North and won the division, a success powered by the revival of RB Cedric Benson and a top 10 defense. The rest of the offense was rather anemic though. Has QB Carson Palmer actually recovered fully from the elbow injury? WR Chad Ochocinco did what he could but didn’t get much help from Laveranues Coles. The sad death of Chris Henry didn’t help their passing game either.
On offense, the Bengals need to do more about the passing game. They acquired WR Antonio Bryant, but he’s not been very consistent throughout his career, mostly because of injuries. The other aspect they’ll need to address is the TE position. They need someone who can catch balls over the middle and can serve as a threat in the endzone.
On defense, the Bengals have done greatly with drafting defensive talent. They’ll look to continue that by adding more talent along the defensive line and in the secondary.
The Bengals should be targeting the number one TE in this year’s draft, Jermaine Gresham. With two third-rounders, they might even trade up slightly to potentially get ahead of the Titans to get him. They do have opportunities down the draft to land guys like Dorin Dickerson and Dennis Pitta if they miss out on Gresham in which case, they look to bolster their offensive line with guys like Mike Iupati and Maurkice Pouncey.
The Bengals face a tough task. I think down the stretch, they started to show cracks. Unless their offensive production improves, I don’t see them contend that well because of the tougher schedule.