The Cincinnati Bengals notably selected former Alabama Crimson Tide offensive lineman Jonah Williams in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft. While wasting absolutely no time upgrading the team's offensive line, the Bengals were actually primed to bolster the same unit later in the draft while Cincinnati was unable to trade up en route to selecting another highly-touted blocker, according to Geoff Hobson of the team's official website.
“Plus, there’s another cliché at work here,” Hobson wrote. “Sometimes the best trades are the one you don’t make. Give Bengals president Mike Brown and director of player personnel Duke Tobin credit here. They tried trading up in the second round for one of those first-round offensive lineman that slid. But they were also adamant. They coveted one of those guys, but they were holding on to their fourth-rounder. And later their fifth. They came into the draft believing the fourth round was where they could make some hay. So Tobin expertly juggled both options and then changed focus, pulled the deal with Denver to move down in the second and got that extra fourth. And Sample.”
The 21-year-old Williams, who was selected by the lowly AFC North franchise at No. 11 overall, now joins a Bengals roster that does not appear primed to make a serious run in 2019-20.
With the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens slated to serve as dangerous teams, it is actually the upgraded Cleveland Browns that will enter the upcoming campaign as the favorites to win the AFC North division in 2019-20.
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