The Cincinnati Bengals pulled off a mild shocker in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft by selecting Michigan safety Daxton Hill.
Mild, because it seemed obvious the pick would go to the defensive side of the ball after the team spent most of free agency souping up the offense.
While Bengals fans probably had preferred targets, Hill amongst those, it’s not hard to see why the team went this route — Hill has elite athleticism, versatility and production to his resume already.
It’s like the perfect Bengals prospect, really. Hill ran a 4.38 40-yard dash at 6’0″ and 191 pounds with elite marks in other drills. He had 69 total tackles, two interceptions and eight passes defended last year alone. And he’s got the ability to line up in the nickel, at safety and perhaps even on the outside.
In fact, a writeup from NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein might remind some of Jessie Bates:
“Hill is a smooth, twitchy athlete who is unencumbered in his coverage movements. He’s rangy playing over the top, has the eyes and burst to play zone, and the oily hips and length to shade bigger slots in man coverage. He can trigger quickly downhill to cut off angles in run support but his play demeanor is more run-and-cover than run-and-hit near the line.”
And bringing up Bates is pretty important. Some fans might worry that this sort of pick means this is Bates’ last season with the team. But if the Bengals are smart, Hill would get that role closer to the line of scrimmage while Bates patrols deep, if not this year, then next. Yes, Hill’s probably an insurance policy, but the defense is much better if they’re playing together.
That aside, this was a really good value pick for the Bengals with names like George Karlaftis off the board. Other popular names like Andrew Booth and Kyler Gordon weren’t necessarily going to come with this same versatility or marriage of instant impact and long-term upside.
At No. 31, the Bengals improved their defense in a big way right away and doubly came away with a prospect who could be an outright star in time. That’s incredible value added to what is already a Super Bowl-worthy roster.
