Cincinnati Bengals NFL Draft Specials Bets 2022: Exact Playing Position of First Drafted Player

The Cincinnati Bengals are coming off one of their best seasons in the past couple of decades in 2021 by making it to the Super Bowl. They now have their sights set on the 2022-23 season, with the NFL Draft beginning on Thursday at 8 p.m.

The biggest question at the end of last season that was a major issue in the regular season and playoffs was: How will the Bengals protect Joe Burrow?

The Bengals answered that question with some key pickups for the offensive line. With that big question answered, the next biggest question for the Bengals is: What other position will the Bengals prioritize in their first pick of the 2022 Draft?

Let’s take a look at some of their weak points and the odds of which position the Bengals are expected to pick up in the first round.

Odds and Predictions

This pick is hard to predict because the Bengals have pick 31, which is the second-lowest pick since they were the runner-ups in the Super Bowl.

betJACK Training Camp lists offensive line (+170) as the betting favorite for the Bengals, ahead of defensive back (+230) and defensive lineman (+230).

🏈Ready to bet on who the Bengals will take at No. 31 overall? Click here to check out all of our available Bengals NFL Draft Prop Bets! 🏈

The Bengals’ pick will heavily depend on who is left on the board for the Bengals at that time. I would assume that the Bengals will have priorities of positions and players they want to draft and then decide once they know who has been taken/ is still on the board.

Two directions I can see the Bengals going is either to continue their pursuit of a strong offensive line to help Joe Burrow and the running game or tackle one of their other key weak spots at cornerback with their first pick of the draft.

The three most likely players to be picked at No. 31 are all interior offensive lineman, including Tyler Linderbaum from Iowa and Zion Johnson of Boston College.

With their potential pick of a cornerback, it is likely that the Bengals would go for Andrew Booth of Clemson or Kaiir Elam from Florida.

The Bengals have already made multiple moves to help improve the offensive line, but what is so tough to decide is whether that effort was enough or if the Bengals will want to continue to show their young QB how much they are concerned for his health and protection.

Bengals Offseason Moves

So far this offseason, the Bengals have signed offensive tackle La’el Collins, offensive guard Alex Cappa and center Ted Karras to improve their offensive line tremendously.

It will be interesting to see how they will utilize Karras since he played left guard last season for the Patriots but was the center for the Dolphins in 2020.

Expected Bengals First Round Pick

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that the Bengals are going to stick with their pursuit of a better offensive line and make it even deeper with the acquisition of a center with their first pick of the 2022 Draft.

With the versatility of Cappa being able to play either left guard or safety, the Bengals have the ability to bring in someone that fits the roster and helps create an even more dangerous Bengals offense for 2022.