The idea of the Cincinnati Bengals trading up in the 2019 NFL draft is a fun one.
Director of player personnel Duke Tobin and the front office have 11 picks to work with, including five in the sixth round. A trade up for a Devin White or even a quarterback would entertain, not to mention fire up the fanbase.
But don’t count on it, as comments from Tobin suggest.
“We got enough needs where we could upgrade at a number of different positions,” Tobin said, according to Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer. “We feel like this draft is going to provide us an option at two or three different positions at 11. How we parse through that will be part of the discussions we have this next month.”
Tobin also commented on how the cost is simply too much for a move up: “Unless you are pursuing somebody who can totally change your team, it’s hard to convince yourself it’s worth giving up the players you have to give up to do that. There are enough good players who can get to 11 and get what you want without having to go any higher.”
While it is smokescreen season, those thoughts fall in line with how the franchise has acted in the past. Tobin and Co. value hoarding as many picks as possible to add roster depth and point to names like Sam Hubbard as reasons they want to hang on to mid-round picks.
It seems it all depends on how the board falls, though. If the Bengals think someone slipping slightly down the board can “totally change your team,” they might be inclined to sniff around about a move.
Otherwise, the Bengals will walk to the podium 11th — or later, as trading down has always been more likely than a move up.
