05-02-2025, 11:21 PM
(04-27-2025, 12:14 AM)Luvnit2 Wrote: I posted this in Fairchild thread as well. ZT's comment after the draft.
Was the thought process that Demetrius Knight Jr. wasn't going to be available if you had waited until the third round?
"Yes."
You felt like you had to go get him, and you felt good that Dylan Fairchild was going to be there in the third round? Did you feel confident that was going to happen?
"I didn't feel good Dylan was going to be there, but yes, that's how it worked out."
I don't think this is even the question. Yes, the Bengals certainly didn't want to wait until the 3rd round and hope Knight was there. The question is whether they tried to trade down. There were numerous 2nd round trades, including one spot in front of the Bengals, where, if the Bengals had made the trade, they would have gotten the 99th pick (!), at the end of the 3rd round, and only had to move down 9 spots. Same with a trade that took place shortly after the Bengals pick.
The odds of Knight being available 9 picks later would have been very high and the gain would have been very high (the 99th pick). And stated in Cincy Jungle:
"Demetrius Knight Jr. is a talented player, but being 25 years old makes it hard to believe he was going to be selected anytime soon. Trading back would have been ideal (and possible since the teams around them both traded back)."
A wise questioner would not have asked do you think he would have been there in the 3rd, but did you try to trade back?
https://www.cincyjungle.com/2025/4/30/24419888/bengals-worst-gpa-2025-nfl-draft-grades
