Bengals feel they can get a top 10 talent without moving up in the Draft

Cincinnati’s director of pro personnel is very optimistic about this class of prospects.

Cincinnati Bengals director of pro personnel, Steven Radicevic, recently spoke with Bengals.com’s Geoff Hobson about the upcoming Draft, and he is really excited about the options he anticipates being available at picks 18 and 49.

And his glowing words about this Draft class indicate that the Bengals are unlikely to feel the need to move up from their 18th overall position. Here’s what he told Hobson:

“It’s a deep draft, except maybe for a couple of positions. But I think it’s probably one of the better drafts that I’ve been around where if you’re in the top 25, you’re getting a player you would normally get in the top 10.”

Translation: We are going to get great at value (something we adore) at pick 18, so why would we give up picks (something we despise) to move up a few spots? Remember, we are a contender looking to stay in contention for years to come. So we’ll just go best player available (of course within the range of positions we actually need). This is the ideal situation for me to be in. I love it here.

And that optimism doesn’t just apply to the first round. Here’s what Radicevic said about the second round: “They’re guys that have legitimate first- and legitimate second-round grades where you’re not reaching for a player there.”

Translation: Yeah, we’re not moving up in the second either. Value, baby!

We’ll see how it all plays out, but don’t expect to see Bengals news at the bottom of the Draft day ticker before picks are made.