Three Down Look: Bengals Beef Up The Trenches With Jackson Carman

The Bengals added offensive line help on Friday

Author:
Russ Heltman
Updated:
May 2, 2021 6:04 PM EDT
Original:
May 1, 2021

Zac Taylor seems to have a type with the most valuable picks in the NFL Draft. The Cincinnati Bengals joined in on the second round trade flurry Friday night when they sent the 38th pick to New England in exchange for No. 46 and two fourth rounders.

Clemson offensive tackle Jackson Carman was in their sights. The pick marks the second straight year that the Bengals have selected offensive players from LSU and Clemson in the first two rounds of the draft.

"We take all the information we can get," Taylor said in response to the Bengals' double-dipping on LSU and Clemson talent in the opening rounds. "It's certainly not the deciding factor, but again we weigh everything that we can find, and having great conversations over the last couple years with Coach [Dabo] Swinney down in Clemson. He's really helped us with Tee [Higgins] and Jackson."

Here is the Three Down Look on Cincinnati's newest offensive lineman.

First Down: Positional Impact

Carman was a two-year starter at Clemson, protecting Trevor Lawrence en route to back-to-back College Football Playoff appearances. The Fairfield High School graduate took over at left tackle as a sophomore, earning All-ACC honors both years.

At 6-feet-7-inches and 317 pounds, Carman has the experience to play tackle but falls short in one key threshold. His 32.5-inch arms aren't close to the 34-inch barrier most successful offensive tackles exceed. Despite that, the Bengals expect him to compete at guard right away.

Pundits praised Carman as a hard worker after he slimmed down from 375 pounds coming into college. Evaluators have labeled him as a more polished run blocker than a pass blocker. He'll be in the mix for a starting offensive line spot, but he needs to develop if he's going to have an impact.

Expect Carman to primarily compete for one of the open guard spots to start his career, with a possible move to right tackle if he develops.

Second Down: Wow! Highlight

Carman has displayed superior athleticism during his time in Death Valley. This play against Miami in a 42-17 victory last October is a great example. The left tackle shows off his speed and ability to block at every level downfield.

The athletic tools are in the shed for Carman, now it's about bringing the NFL consistency out of him to make sure this pick hits for the Bengals.

Third Down: Stat To Know

The Bengals traded back from No. 38 to No. 46 with the New England Patriots. Bill Belichick had to give up a pretty penny to draft his second straight player from Alabama, defensive tackle Christian Barmore.

The Bengals received picks 122 and 139 as compensation, a deal that every major trade charting system graded as a win. Over The Cap's metric placed it 7th out of 103 second-round trade downs since 2002.

The Bengals pulled off a great trade with one of the league's savviest deal makers and still got the offensive lineman they were targeting in the second round.

For more on the NFL Draft, bookmark AllBengals and check out our LIVE draft tracker here.

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