The tape said wait; the Bengals did not. Jaylen Reed went at the 118th overall pick, a good 61 picks before the board was ready. Little went right, and the F does not pretend otherwise.

They lost the exchange badly enough to drag the whole class down. The Ezeiruaku pick reads as want over need, and the roster will feel it at tight end, wide receiver and other spots. For all the activity, tight end went untouched, which is hard to explain.

Landing Higgins that late papers over a lot of smaller sins.

In the end, a class that has to defy its grades just to matter.