JoshuaM2'S MOCK DRAFT
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JoshuaM2'S MOCK DRAFT
RUN ON FEB 14, 2026

Bengals dream

  • JoshuaM2 DRAFTING FOR THE
    Bengals
Draft Selections
Caleb Downs Head Shot
PICK: 8 RND: 1 (CIN)
Caleb Downs
S Ohio State
Akheem Mesidor Head Shot
PICK: 41 RND: 2 (CIN)
Akheem Mesidor
DL-EDGE Miami
Caden Curry Head Shot
PICK: 72 RND: 3 (CIN)
Caden Curry
DE Ohio State
Bryce Boettcher Head Shot
PICK: 110 RND: 4 (CIN)
Bryce Boettcher
LB Oregon
Isaiah Jatta Head Shot
PICK: 187 RND: 6 (CIN)
Isaiah Jatta
OT BYU
Barion Brown Head Shot
PICK: 197 RND: 6 (CIN)
Barion Brown
WR LSU
Cormani McClain Head Shot
PICK: 226 RND: 7 (CIN)
Cormani McClain
CB Florida
Draft Picks Received
Caleb Downs Head Shot
PICK: 8 RND: 1 (NO)
Caleb Downs
S Ohio State
Draft Picks Traded
Cashius Howell Head Shot
PICK: 10 RND: 1 (NO)
Cashius Howell
DE-EDGE Texas A&M
No Pick Head Shot
PICK: RND: 2 (ARI)
NEXT YEAR (2027)
 
Draft Grade — Bengals
Overall C+
ValueC+ NeedB- TradesB FutureC
A weekend that raised as many questions as it answered. The Bengals get a C+.

The Cormani McClain pick is the one that will follow the Bengals into the fall. They took him 60 spots ahead of his grade, and the board is not shy about saying so. The good and the questionable cancel out to a C+.

With tight end, interior defensive lineman and other spots unsolved, spending premium capital on edge rusher is the choice that costs them. Leaving tight end unaddressed is the roster risk they will have to answer for in the fall.

So much rides on Caleb Downs that the real verdict is a season or two away.

Pick Analysis
Pick8 Rnd1 Caleb Downs
A clean, defensible pick in the 8th overall pick with a little surplus value in Caleb Downs. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
Pick41 Rnd2 Akheem Mesidor
Akheem Mesidor at the 41st pick is a conviction pick that outran the value. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
Pick72 Rnd3 Caden Curry
A curious use of Round 3, Pick 8. Tight end, interior defensive lineman and other spots needed the pick; an edge rusher in Caden Curry did not.
Pick110 Rnd4 Bryce Boettcher
Bryce Boettcher at pick No. 110 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. A need, and now a little less of one.
Pick187 Rnd6 Isaiah Jatta
They reached a country mile for Isaiah Jatta at pick 187, and the board is aghast. It fills a real need, too.
Pick197 Rnd6 Barion Brown
Barion Brown at No. 197 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Pick226 Rnd7 Cormani McClain
Cormani McClain in the 226th pick is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.