Bengals draft positional preview: Addressing a major need at linebacker
It’s the second quarter in Week 8, and the Bengals have a 10-3 lead over the Eagles. On 3rd and 3 for Philadelphia, running back Kenneth Gainwell motions across the backfield to set up a swing pass. Logan Wilson knew exactly what was coming.
Wilson diagnosed the play perfectly, sliced through traffic and would have had a pick six had Gainwell not broken up the pass.
This play was the high water mark of the 2024 Bengals’ defense, and it was all downhill from there. That unit was a mess last season, but Wilson was quietly very good again. He didn’t get a ton of chances to make dynamic plays like this pass breakup because the rest of the Bengals’ defense was consistently at a disadvantage. But plays like this pass breakup, his forced fumble against the Chargers and some crunching hits in Week 7 against the Browns showed that Wilson remains a playmaker that the Bengals are trying to build around.
Wilson entered the offseason as the only Bengals’ player locked into a specific role on defense for 2025. When everyone else was either requesting trades or in danger of being bumped down the depth chart due to a free agent addition, the confidence in Wilson never wavered.
The rest of the Bengals’ linebacker room is completely unsettled.
Germaine Pratt requested a trade after he was already a cap casualty candidate. Oren Burks has been a third-or-fourth linebacker for his entire career and wasn’t signed with the expectation that he’d be the immediate starter next to Wilson. Maema Njongmeta and Shaka Heyward are depth pieces. Joe Bachie could still be re-signed.
There are a lot of concerns with this Bengals’ defense right now. But they can talk themselves into starting Myles Murphy and TJ Slaton on the defensive line, into getting some development from the young corners, into Geno Stone building on how he played last December and on Jordan Battle taking another step.
The Bengals can squint and see a filled out depth chart on the defensive line and in the secondary, even if that depth chart is flawed. They do have depth pieces like Cam Sample, Cedric Johnson, Kris Jenkins, McKinnley Jackson, Josh Newton and Daijahn Anthony.
But there is no way to paint an optimistic picture about the Bengals’ linebacker room outside of Wilson right now. It’s why the Bengals are expected to draft a potential starter at that position.
The Germaine Pratt of it all
Before the start of free agency, all indications were that Pratt would be gone. Last season, he was the heart and soul of a defense that had no heart or soul. He didn’t tackle, and he didn’t play well in coverage. There was a deep free agent class of potential starters, including obvious fits like Robert Spillane, Elandon Roberts and Cody Barton.
The free agent linebacker class is now dried up. This feels a lot like what the Bengals went through at running back entering 2024 when it basically took a 10-leg parlay between the draft and free agency for Joe Mixon to end up sticking on the roster.
As much as Pratt struggled last year, linebacker is the weakest position group in this year’s draft. If the Bengals don’t land a potential plug and play starter on Day 1 or Day 2, would they open conversations back up with Pratt? Zac Taylor didn’t address where things stood between Pratt and the Bengals last week at the owners meetings.
Welcome Oren Burks
When defenses have a weak linebacker No. 2, elite quarterbacks often pick on that guy. See the 2023 Super Bowl when Patrick Mahomes put Burks (then with the San Francisco 49ers) under the microscope and found easy completions against him.
Burks is making backup money, and former Bengals linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither is making nearly twice as much in Arizona as Burks is in Cincinnati.
Burks’ biggest assets are his consistent tackling, his experience on winning teams and his value on special teams. He seems to be a good veteran presence, and he has played in complex defenses. But signing a 30-year-old who has never been a full-time starter isn’t a solution at a position of need.
Al Golden plans to use more 4-3 looks this year, and Burks’ quick twitch and ability to shed blocks can help against the run. But his limitations in coverage, lack of value as a blitzer and limited number of splash plays make him a difficult guy to plug right into 100% of the snaps. He’d be a great guy to have as a role player/bridge starter.
The rest of the depth
Bachie was a favorite of Golden’s during his first stint coaching the Bengals, and Bachie is also a favorite of Bengals linebackers coach Mike Hodges (they crossed paths in New Orleans). He hasn’t gotten to play much because Wilson and Pratt have stayed healthy over the last few years and because when Wilson was out with a knee injury last December, Bachie was also hurt. He’s a similar type of player as Burks. Bachie remains a free agent, and we’ll see what happens here.
Njongmeta and Shaka Heyward are former undrafted free agents who would make their biggest impact against the run and on special teams.
There isn’t a coverage oriented player in this group. There also isn’t a bigger linebacker who’s a real thumper that plays with his hair on fire.
Wilson and Burks are locks to make the team. There should be two depth/special teams spots for Njongmeta/Heyward/Bachie/a new UDFA. We’ll see what happens with Pratt.
There’s a clear spot on the depth chart for a rookie to come in and make an immediate impact.
Draft outlook
The first-round unicorn: Jihaad Campbell (Alabama)
Typically, I’m a proponent of using Day 1 picks at premium positions. The best linebackers typically don’t come out of the first round.
There were nine off ball linebackers on last year’s NFL top-100 list. In that group, there were two first-round picks, two second-round picks, three third-round picks, a fifth-rounder and a seventh-rounder. There’s not a good hit rate on first-round linebackers (see Devin Bush, Isaiah Simmons, Kenneth Murray, Jamin Davis and Zaven Collins).
But Jihaad Campbell’s versatility, splash play ability and playmaking style is exactly what this Bengals’ defense needs. Because he can also rush the passer at a high level, he could check two boxes.
I haven’t finished it yet, but Campbell will rank very highly on my Bengals’ specific big board. On the 2025 Bengals’ defense, he’d be a combination of what Pratt and Mike Hilton had been for them.
The Bengals have a lot of safe, reliable, lower ceiling players on this defense. They don’t have enough playmakers. Campbell would bring some real versatility as a guy who can blitz at a high level and cover. He’s big, fast and strong, and he has the tools to line up on the edge in specific packages. He’d immediately be one of the Bengals’ best pass rushers. He’s a true modern linebacker and has some positionlessness to him, giving Golden some flexibility that he doesn’t really have with the current guys on the roster. Campbell even has some experience in the slot.
He doesn’t have the ball production in coverage that Wilson has, but that makes Campbell a strong complement. Campbell has experience playing in a complex scheme in the SEC and checks a lot of boxes that recent Bengals’ first-round picks do.
Even though drafting a linebacker carries some risk, Campbell is the best playmaker that the Bengals could find in the first round. He’d also play more snaps than anyone else the Bengals would draft. He’d immediately be in the mix to play every single snap.
The knocks on Campbell is that he’s coming off of a shoulder injury. He also only has two years of experience as an off-ball linebacker. If he had the feel, play recognition, instincts and anticipation that Wilson has, then Campbell would be a top-10 pick. Golden would have to develop those traits in Campbell.
Outside of Campbell, this is a weak linebacker class. The Bengals wouldn’t be able to find another player at this position who could bring versatility as well as make an immediate impact.
If the intangibles check out and if he impresses in interviews, then I’d be all in on Campbell.
The only Round 2 option: Carson Schwesinger (UCLA)
In a weak linebacker class, the only projected second-round pick is a former walk-on who barely played before 2024.
If the Bengals drafted Schwesinger, he’d have an immediate role on passing downs. There are a lot of similarities between him and Logan Wilson.
Schwesinger is a sure tackler who led the nation in that stat last season. His favorite part of the game are plays where he sprints down the field in a Cover-2 defense, drops back and takes away vertical routes. That’s a classic Wilson move, and Schwesinger has the speed, athleticism and feel in coverage to make an impact on those plays.
He shows terrific anticipation, he diagnoses plays well and he’s a reliable piece. He reads, reacts and flies to the ball.
But Schwesinger is still a former walk-on who doesn’t pop off the tape. He lacks the power, block shedding ability, the ability to knock back linemen and the ability to speed up the quarterback on rushes or quarterback runs like typical Round 2 linebackers bring to the table.
Drafting Schwesinger would be very safe, and there’s value in that for a Bengals’ defense that needs some more consistency. He’d enter the Bengals’ linebacker room in a rotation, fill his gaps against the run and look the part dropping back in coverage. He wouldn’t produce a ton of splash plays, but he wouldn’t hurt the Bengals either. He’s a very clean prospect who feels like the linebacker version of Kris Jenkins Jr.
The Round 3 thumpers
If the Bengals don’t draft Campbell in the first round, then Danny Stutsman (Oklahoma) slots in as a perfect fit in the third round.
The third-round linebacker is a classic Bengals move, and Stutsman plays a lot like the linebackers (Spillane, Roberts, Barton) that the Bengals should have added in free agency.
Stutsman is an old school MLB who wears a neck roll. He gets downhill, lays down his shoulder, breaks into the backfield and delivers big hits. He plays with his hair on fire, provides massive celebrations after big plays and was known for his motivational speeches at Oklahoma.
His size, power and tackling make him a clean fit in the AFC North on rushing downs. His coverage ability and versatility are more lacking, but Stutsman would step right in and compete with Burks for the starting spot.
Demetrius Knight Jr. (South Carolina) is more like Pratt. Knight is an outstanding athlete with great vision and physicality. He posted elite 40-yard dash and shuttle drill times, has a well-cut frame and knocks back blockers as well as any linebacker in this class. That push back also shows up on blitzes, and he’s a hard hitter.
He’s another guy that’s limited in coverage but could step in and compete with Burks for those LB2 snaps. It’s worth noting that Knight is about to turn 25 (the same age as Geno Stone, three years younger than Pratt).
Golden will have to teach Knight the pre-snap recognition and anticipation that were Pratt’s biggest strengths. Knight has the tools to force negative plays, but there’s some volatility here.
There are some other potential Day 2 options at linebacker (Chris Paul Jr. Smael Mondon), but there’s some more projection and less clean fits with those two players.
In my estimation, Campbell is the only surefire Day 1 starter in this class, Schwesinger is the only Day 2 linebacker with a combination of coverage potential and consistent tackling and Stutsman and Knight are the only other linebackers remaining who’d challenge Burks for the starting spot.
In recent years, the Bengals have reached in the third round to make sure that they fill positions of need. If they don’t pick Campbell, then I could see them pushing Stutsman and Knight up their boards to make sure that they have a legitimate rookie linebacker on the roster.
If the Bengals don’t land one of these linebackers, then they’ll be asking Burks to deliver a career year, potentially reopening conversations with Pratt and entering 2025 with more uncertainty at LB2 that there is at any other position group on the roster.