Cincinnati Bengals Mock Draft and Big Board: Updated Day 2 Predictions

The Cincinnati Bengals stayed true to their board in the first round of Thursday's NFL draft, taking a position that didn't qualify as an immediate need with Houston cornerback William Jackson III.

Blame former coaches, as wideout seemed like the most obvious target for the Bengals in the first round. Then Hue Jackson and the Cleveland Browns took Corey Coleman, Jay Gruden and Washington took Josh Doctson and Mike Zimmer and the Minnesota Vikings took Laquon Treadwell.

Not that Jackson is a bad pick. The Bengals were going to hit corner at one point or another, and he comes with the upside of perhaps being the best in class down the road.

The ripple effect is interesting, though. Within, let's take an updated look at Cincinnati's big board and a mock draft for the rest of the team's picks.

Big Board

Cincinnati getting a corner at No. 24 makes things quite interesting for the team's big board.

Corner doesn't just evaporate from the needs list because if the value's there, the team will still pull the trigger. However, need will certainly play a bigger factor in how the team acts in the middle rounds, especially on Friday.

Cincinnati Bengals Big Board

Rank	Player	Position	School
1	Myles Jack	OLB	UCLA
2	Mackensie Alexander	CB	Clemson
3	Kamalei Correa	LB	Boise State
4	Andrew Billings	DT	Baylor
5	Kevin Dodd	DE	Clemson
6	Noah Spence	DE	Eastern Kentucky
7	Chris Jones	DT	Mississippi State
8	Jonathan Bullard	DE	Florida
9	Nick Martin	C	Notre Dame
10	Jason Spriggs	OL	Indiana
11	Michael Thomas	WR	Ohio State
12	Tyler Boyd	WR	Pittsburgh
13	Cody Whitehair	OL	Kansas State
14	Emmanuel Ogbah	DE	Oklahoma State
15	Reggie Ragland	LB	Alabama
16	Sterling Shepard	WR	Oklahoma
17	Su'a Cravens	LB	USC
18	A'Shawn Robinson	DT	Alabama
19	Joshua Perry	LB	Ohio State
20	Kendall Fuller	CB	Virginia Tech
21	Vonn Bell	S	Ohio State
22	Jarran Reed	DT	Alabama
23	Shilique Calhoun	DE	Michigan State
24	Jeremy Cash	S	Duke
25	Christian Westerman	OL	Arizona State
26	Hunter Henry	TE	Arkansas
27	Austin Johnson	DT	Penn State
28	Xavien Howard	CB	Baylor
29	Kyler Fackrell	LB	Utah State
30	Jalen Mills	S	LSU
31	Pharoh Cooper	WR	South Carolina
32	Kentrell Brothers	LB	Mississippi
33	Shon Coleman	OL	Auburn
34	Carl Nassib	DE	Penn State
35	Braxton Miller	WR	Ohio State
36	Le'Raven Clark	OL	Texas Tech
37	Deion Jones	LB	LSU
38	Jordan Jenkins	LB	Georgia
39	Vadal Alexander	OL	LSU
40	Sheldon Day	DT	Notre Dame
41	Charles Tapper	DE	Oklahoma
42	Darian Thompson	S	Boise State
43	Kenny Lawler	WR	California
44	Leonte Carroo	WR	Rutgers
45	Rashard Higgins	WR	Colorado State
46	Jerald Hawkins	OL	LSU
47	Will Redmond	CB	Mississippi State
48	Joe Schobert	LB	Wisconsin
49	Sean Davis	CB	Maryland
50	Connor McGovern	OL	Missouri
51	Javon Hargrave	DT	South Carolina State
52	Cyrus Jones	CB	Alabama
53	Miles Killebrew	S	Southern Utah
54	KeiVarae Russell	CB	Notre Dame
55	Adolphus Washington	DT	Ohio State
56	Jordan Payton	WR	UCLA
57	Bronson Kaufusi	DE	BYU
58	Kolby Listenbee	WR	TCU
59	Scooby Wright III	LB	Arizona
60	Keyarris Garrett	WR	Tulsa
61	Ronald Blair	DE	Appalachian State
62	Yannick Ngakoue	LB	Maryland
63	Max Tuerk	C	USC
64	Jonathan Jones	CB	Auburn
65	DeAndre Houston-Carson	S	William & Mary
66	Maurice Canady	CB	Virginia
67	Charone Peake	WR	Clemson
68	Kevin Byard	S	Middle Tennessee
69	Jaylon Smith	LB	Notre Dame
70	Jihad Ward	DE	Illinois
71	Aaron Burbridge	WR	Michigan State
72	Hassan Ridgeway	DT	Texas
73	Eric Striker	LB	Oklahoma
74	Nick Vigil	LB	Utah State
75	Jatavis Brown	LB	Akron
76	Matt Judon	DE	Grand Valley State
77	Graham Glasgow	OL	Michigan
78	Rashard Robinson	CB	LSU
79	Maliek Collins	DT	Nebraska
80	Willie Beavers	OT	Western Michigan
81	KJ Dillon	S	West Virginia
82	Ryan Smith	CB	North Carolina Central
83	Tyler Matakevich	ILB	Temple
84	B.J. Goodson	LB	Clemson
85	Dean Lowry	DE	Northwestern
86	Kyle Murphy	T	Stanford
87	Malcolm Mitchell	WR	Georgia
88	Alex Lewis	OL	Nebraska
89	D.J. White	CB	Georgia Tech
90	Trevor Davis	WR	California
91	Zack Sanchez	CB	Oklahoma
92	Jason Fanaika	DE	Utah
93	Robby Anderson	WR	Temple
94	Aaron Burbridge	WR	Michigan State
95	Evan Boehm	C	Missouri
96	Blake Martinez	LB	Stanford
97	James Cowser	DE	Southern Utah
98	Adam Gotsis	DT	Georgia Tech
99	Daniel Braverman	WR	Western Michigan
100	Devon Cajuste	WR	Stanford

Round 2

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

Jones can suit up right away for the Bengals.

Pick 55: Chris Jones, DL, Mississippi State

Wideout seems like the obvious choice here for the Bengals after things fell apart in the first round, but they cannot afford to ignore Mississippi State's Chris Jones if he's still on the board when they get to the podium.

Quietly one of the better interior defensive linemen in the draft, Jones is one of the top prospects still waiting around in the green room. The biggest knock on Jones is his playing with an inconsistent motor, something that shouldn't be a problem in Cincinnati given the coaching staff and strong leadership base.

Jones is 6'6" and 310 pounds with a decent ability to rush the passer and a strong run-stuffing presence.

In other words, he's just what the Bengals need right away next to Geno Atkins inside with Domata Peko and Pat Sims getting up there in age.

Though unexpected, Jones is the right move to help a unit with a few notable holes of its own to fill.

Round 3

Pick 87: Braxton Miller, WR, Ohio State

Cincinnati didn't get the wideouts it likely coveted in the first round of the draft, and in this scenario, the board doesn't fall in a way for the team to address the position in the second round, either.

Which is fine, because the Bengals can grab a prospect like Ohio State's Braxton Miller and let him run wild as a situational contributor next year.

Most know Miller's story, as a recent position change has the NFL world abuzz. Coming in at 6'1" and 201 pounds, Miller is an interesting weapon who has immense upside.

"He's going to go by at least the third round because of his speed and athleticism. He's got some traits that will get him drafted early, and a team will worry about coaching him up after they get him in," an NFC executive told NFL.com's Lance Zierlein.

That team is the Bengals, who already have A.J. Green and Brandon LaFell with younger weapons such as James Wright ready to see expanded roles. Miller is a great value who can make a big splash if given a chance.

Round 4

Darron Cummings/Associated Press

Cincinnati could use Dean Lowry as a rotational presence right away.

Pick 122: Dean Lowry, DE, Northwestern

After losing Wallace Gilberry to free agency, and with the Margus Hunt and Will Clarke experiments not working out, the Bengals need to hit defensive end at some point.

Now would be that point, especially with a prospect like Dean Lowry still on the board.

Lowry just looks like a Bengals player at 6'6" and 296 pounds. He can be a base-defender guy but is versatile enough to kick inside—which is what the Bengals ask of their rotational guys when Carlos Dunlap and Michael Johnson remain on the field on the edges.

While not an insane athlete who will use a flurry of moves to get around blockers, he's a high-effort player who can use the players and coaching staff around him to earn a spot in the rotation right away.

Round 5

Darron Cummings/Associated Press

Roger Lewis can pan out if given a chance.

Pick 161: Roger Lewis, WR, Bowling Green

It wouldn't be a terrible idea for the Bengals to double down on wideout this year, especially after the guys they wanted came off the board before they could get to the podium in Round 1.

Such a theme in mind here in the fifth round, Bowling Green's Roger Lewis looks like a great option.

Lewis comes in at 6'0" and 201 pounds with a willingness to go across the middle or make the physical plays at the first-down marker. Zierlein explained Lewis' habit of breaking free deep, too:

"

While Lewis produced some eye-­popping deep ball numbers, he's not a true vertical receiver in terms of speed and ball skills. His build­up speed can get him past cornerbacks looking to squat on Bowling Green's underneath work, but he could find vertical success in the NFL to be exceptionally challenging due to his lack of speed and overall traits.

"

All the above said, Lewis is one of the draft's biggest risks thanks to a bevy of red flags. Here, though, he's worth the risk, and the upside is tremendous if he can work his way into a roster spot and start learning from the veterans on the team.

Round 6

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

Jack Allen can push Russell Bodine as a rookie.

Pick 199: Jack Allen, OL, Michigan State

The Bengals took a pair offensive tackles last year, but that doesn't help the potential depth issues on the inside, nor does it push disappointing center Russell Bodine.

An extra pick in the third or fourth round to help massage the issue would have been nice, but settling for Michigan State's Jack Allen here isn't the worst outcome.

A former wrestler at 6'1" and 294 pounds, Allen doesn't have a ton of athleticism but wins with leverage and power.

Pro Football Focus' Mike Renner detailed Allen's strengths: "Allen was one of the most consistent centers in all of college football the previous two seasons and actually graded out better as a junior than a senior. He plays with some of the best leverage you’ll see in the draft class, and standing at 6'1", that shouldn’t be surprising."

A consistent player and leader, Allen is what the Bengals need on the depth chart to push Bodine, if not take over the position down the road.

Admitting a mistake isn't fun for any coaching staff, but neither is watching a quarterback get hurt.

Round 7

Gregory Payan/Associated Press/Associated Press

Jayron Kearse needs to be coached up but has upside.

Pick 245: Jayron Kearse, S, Clemson

Jayron Kearse is one of those late-round picks with incredible upside should coaching get the best out of him.

At 6'4" and 216 pounds, most safeties just aren't built like Kearse, who happens to have the necessary bloodlines (nephew of Jevon Kearse) to succeed in the NFL.

The problem is Kearse didn't flash often on film. Given the frame, though, a guy at a position of need this late only adds to depth and in time could help a potential starter emerge.

At worst, Kearse can become a solid special teams presence, which is a win at this point in the draft.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com and are accurate as of April 28. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.