Bengals Deemed Best Fit For Very Popular Top-10 Option In 2026 NFL Draft

ESPN's Matt Bowen tied 20 top draft prospects to their best fits for the 2026 cycle, and one of Cincinnati's most popular options got the best-fit nod for the Bengals: Ohio State safety Caleb Downs.

He could be a no-brainer pick for Cincinnati on April 23, depending on how the rest of the top 10 plays out.

"I think Downs could go higher in the top 10, but this was the best fit in my eyes after the Bengals signed safety Bryan Cook in free agency," Bowen wrote. "Under coordinator Al Golden, Downs would be an interchangeable safety. He could rotate low in the single-high zone while playing over the top from depth. Plus, with Downs' ability to disrupt the line of scrimmage, Golden can play him as a big nickelback in three-safety personnel. He has the urgent play demeanor to set the identity of Cincinnati's defense."

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A Potential Position Overhaul

Ohio State Buckeyes safety Caleb Downs leaves the field with a rose in his mouth following the 42-17 win over the Tennessee Volunteers in the College Football Playoff first round game at Ohio Stadium in Columbus on Dec. 21, 2024. Ohio State will face Oregon in the Rose Bowl. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Cincinnati would have completely overhauled the safety room positively during just one offseason if Downs is the pick. He'd slot right in with Cook and Jordan Battle, who played pretty solid ball down the stretch of the 2025 season.

Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin has plenty of factors to weigh with some of the best draft capital they've had all decade. Fixing the safety spot was clearly a priority after letting Geno Stone walk and inking Cook to a big deal for the position.

"I’m not going to say that anybody was the cause of our defensive fall this year. I’m not going to call out any of our players on that," Tobin said at the 2026 NFL Combine. "The group has to play better as a whole. What we like in safeties is what everyone likes in safeties. You want instinctive guys who see the big picture. They have to have speed to cover. If they can cover in man, that really opens up a lot of opportunities for you. They have to be willing to tackle in the box. They have to be a good open-field tackler. The more space you create with those guys, the tougher the tackles get. And there are no safeties in the NFL that don’t miss tackles.

"You just want to limit those exposures to where they have the big gap to make up. But space causes missed tackles more than anything. So spacing is important. That plays into some of the instincts and so forth that we really want to see in that position group. But those really factor in every position on defense. Defense is reacting to what the offense does. They don’t get to dictate all the time. And they’ve gotta see it, react to it, and play fast."

Check out the full prospect fit list from Bowen here.

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