Hindsight is a stellar blessing when it comes to mock drafts.
This is especially interesting when it comes to the Cincinnati Bengals in recent years given some of their past drafts. Would the team still take Cedric Ogbuehi? John Ross?
How about a bit farther back? The Draft Network’s Kyle Crabbs looked at the 2008 draft and came to one conclusion — the Bengals still needed a linebacker, just not the one they drafted:
Wow, what year is it? The Bengals are picking in the top-10 and need good linebackers. Crazy! Mayo never played for anyone but the Patriots in the NFL but was a stout presence in the middle — without being the liability that Bengals fans have become accustomed to for much of the last decade in Vontaze Burfict.
Grabbing Jerod Mayo instead of Keith Rivers is an interesting idea. Rivers was never the same after an injury and ended up making appearances in just three seasons for the Bengals before being traded away for a fifth-round pick.
Then there was Mayo, the 2008 Defensive Rookie of the Year who spent 2008-2015 in New England tallying up 803 total tackles, 11 sacks, eight forced fumbles and three interceptions, missing more than three games in a season just twice.
It’s safe to say there aren’t any complaints about this one. Had this worked out, perhaps the Bengals would have stopped relying so much on late-round linebackers to fill the void instead of attacking the problem. It’s not as big of a gaffe as say, Ogbuehi, but the Rivers pick is indeed worth a revision.
