Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report listed six players and team pairings that he believes wouldn’t make sense in the upcoming draft.
The Cincinnati Bengals made the list, with Knox saying that Alabama RB Jahmyr Gibbs wouldn’t make sense for them to take in the draft.
Here’s some of what Knox said about Gibbs and the Bengals:
Cincinnati only utilized zone blocking on 60 percent of its runs last season, according to Sports Info Solutions, good for 25th in the NFL. The Bengals also feature one of the worst run-blocking interior lines in the league. As a team, they ranked 29th in yards per carry (3.8) last season.
If the Bengals replace Mixon, they need a more powerful back who can fight through contact. If they look to complement him, they need a receiving back who can replace the departed Samaje Perine. Gibbs would fill neither role.
It is true that the Bengals moved away from zone runs last year, but that doesn’t mean Gibbs couldn’t work in Cincinnati.
The offense moved away from zone runs last season more than usual for Zac Taylor because the offense was getting too predictable, running when Joe Burrow was under center and passing from the shotgun.
The change happened in the middle of the season in 2022, but the Bengals are not far removed from being a team that used zone runs as a core piece of their offense.
As gifted as this offense is, it doesn’t seem like a stretch that they would be able to make another change and still excel with a guy like Gibbs in the backfield and Burrow leading the way.
The Bengals’ options in the draft are still wide open.
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