Bengals Meeting With Three Intriguing Offensive Line Prospects Ahead of 2025 NFL Draft

CINCINNATI — It's no secret that the Bengals need to address their offensive line. They appear to be eyeing a plethora of options with the 2025 NFL Draft less than a month away.

Cincinnati has a pre-draft visit scheduled with Minnesota lineman Aireontae Ersery. They are one of at least 10 teams that plan on bringing him in for a pre-draft visit according to Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network.

Ersery is 6-foot-6, 331 pounds. The Bengals could be looking for a young tackle that they could develop behind Orlando Brown Jr. and Amarius Mims.

NFL.com insider Lance Zierlein compared Ersery to Marcus Cannon.

"Three-year starter at left tackle with good power. Ersery is not a natural bender, which creates disadvantages with leverage and when attempting to mirror moving fronts," Zierlein wrote. "He’s well-versed in Minnesota’s outside zone attack, but might be more consistent in power, inside zone and hat-on-hat matchups. He’s huge, but he sets with good quickness to the rush, using his length and hand strength to gather it or lock it out. His anchor is derived from his upper half, which opens him to hand counters. Ersery has the potential to become an average starting tackle on the right side, but his success will be tied to matchups across from him."

Ersery is projected to be a day two pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

The Bengals also met with Boston College offensive linemen Ozzy Trapilo and Drew Kendall according to NFL insider Tony Pauline. Trapilo would be an ideal candidate to come in and be a swing tackle right away.

He's 6-8, 316 pounds and should be a quality pass protector in the NFL.

"Trapilo won’t generate much movement in the run game, but good upper-body power helps him neutralize the edge," Zierlein wrote. "He operates with sound pass sets, active hands and excellent arm extension. He has a good feel for pocket depth with an ability to ride rushers over the top, but he will get beat by inside counters and speed-to-power rushers at times. Trapilo could operate as a swing tackle early on but his potential in pass protection gives him a good chance to become a starter."

Both Trapilo and Ersery would be day two draft targets. Could the Bengals kick one of them inside to play guard? That would be a big question.

It's reasonable to think the Bengals would move either player inside and see if they could be an instant starter at guard. That doesn't mean they wouldn't get reps at tackle, but adding a big, young guard has to be a priority for the Bengals in the draft.

Meanwhile, Kendall projects to be a center-only player in the NFL. He's the son of former NFL guard Pete Kendall.

"The traits and athletic features don’t stand out, but Kendall comes from NFL bloodlines and simply knows how to play," Zierlein wrote. "He’s detail-oriented as a run blocker with good footwork, hand placement and body control. He adjusts well to movement in-line or in space to execute his block. He’s not a bender, so I expect him to have trouble dealing with A-gap pluggers and longer bull-rushers who can roll him into the pocket. Kendall’s technique, toughness and intelligence are important elements as a center, but given his measurables and lack of position flexibility, his ceiling might be on the lower end."

Kendall is ranked 280th on Pro Football Focus' big board. He's a possible day three draft target or priority free agent target for the Bengals.