A two-win December may’ve taken the Cincinnati Bengals out of the running to draft former Oregon offensive lineman Penei Sewell. The 20-year old Sewell is currently projected to be drafted somewhere in the top five selections, and Cincinnati currently sits at the No. 5 spot in the current NFL Draft order.
If the Bengals truly desire Sewell, they will very likely have to trade up to get him, and that’s what ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper thinks should happen. He explained as such in a recent episode of ESPN’s First Draft podcast:
“Cincinnati Bengals desperately need Penei Sewell for Joe Burrow to keep him upright and healthy coming off that knee [surgery], so I think you go from five to two, the Jets go down from two to five.