Cincinnati Bengals Select Elite College Defender in Post-Trade Deadline Mock Draft

A big need filled with this pick.

Ohio State Buckeyes defensive back Caleb Downs (2) warms up during the NCAA football game against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Ohio Stadium in Columbus on Nov. 1, 2025. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

CINCINNATI — CBS Sports writer Ryan Wilson dropped a new mock draft this week following the trade deadline action on Tuesday. Cincinnati is on pace to have a top-10 2026 pick amidst another potentially lost season in the Joe Burrow era. He has the team rolling with Ohio State safety Caleb Downs with the eighth pick.

Cincinnati hasn't had consistently good safety play in years since the exit of Jessie Bates III in the 2023 offseason. Downs is CBS Sports' fifth-best prospect overall.

"Downs could be a Troy Polamalu-level talent in the NFL. He's only 5-foot-11, and he may not end up running a 4.35-second 40-yard dash, but I don't care," Wilson wrote. "Not even a little bit. Both Kyle Hamilton and Brian Branch slipped on draft day because of mediocre 40 times. They're two of the best young defensive backs in football. Downs is a run-game enforcer and has the sideline-to-sideline juice, coupled with the short-area burst, to excel in pass coverage."

Safety, defensive end, linebacker, cornerback, defensive tackle.

Cincinnati arguably has major needs at EVERY spot on the defense, and Downs could easily be the best player available and fill one of those glaring holes.

The Bengals currently have the league's worst defense in just about every relevant metric, including points per game allowed (33.3, nearly three points more than any other team).

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