Bengals Mock Draft: Safety Caleb Downs at 10

0:00For the NFL, it's March 5th. Here's what's happening. Bengals fans are buzzing over a new media mock draft for 2026 that nods to the Andrew Whitworth rule on its 20th anniversary. The idea is simple. Grab the top talent at a premium position regardless of team needs. In this post combined seven round projection Cincinnati takes safety Caleb Downs at pick 10. Downs surprisingly failed that far, making him tough to pass up even with his Ohio State teammate Sunny Styles turning heads at the combine. This year's safety class looks loaded with maybe three going in the first round. The Bengals play a safe instead of gambling on one slipping to pick 41. NFL executives are pushing Cincinnati to draft an elite athlete to protect and boost Joe Burrow, though they see other paths ahead. Offensively, bringing back Dalton Rizzner to start a ride guard locks in the line for next season, but some wonder if more tweaks are needed. Defensively, the unit showed real progress last year.

1:00Thanks to guys like Barrett and D-Night stepping up to call line stunts on the fly. That on-field communication made a big difference under coordinator Al Golden. Looking ahead, projections have the Bengals landing a star defensive tackle in free agency next week. Mock signings pointed just four realistic additions to get Golden's defense humming strong by 2026. Support for this episode comes from our sponsor. Subscription. A pillow that plays your podcasts, music or white noise privately. No earbuds required. SLI SullyPillow.com SullyPillow.com SullyPillow.com