Why the Cincinnati Bengals Should Be Tracking Whether Ohio State WR Carnell Tate Will Be Available at No. 10

The Cincinnati Bengals likely aren’t considering drafting Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate.

But they should be interested in who does.

The key to the Bengals having top defensive options to choose from at No. 10 will be where receivers such as Tate, USC’s Makai Lemon and Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson are drafted, as well as offensive tackles such as Utah’s Spencer Fano and Miami’s Francis Mauigoa land.

According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, you can count of Tate going in the first nine picks to push another defensive option to the Bengals at 10.

Breer wrote, “ I’d say Ohio State WR Carnell Tate is secure as a top-10 pick and could go as high as No. 4 to the Titans or No. 5 to the Giants.

“After that, I don’t sense there’s a consensus No. 2 at the receiver position, with USC’s Makai Lemon, Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson, Texas A&M’s KC Concepcion and Indiana’s Omar Cooper Jr. among those that different teams see as the next guy after Tate. I also think the depth of the draft class at the position could lead to some teams passing on receivers altogether in the first round.”

Tate has had visits with the Tennessee Titans, New York Giants, Cleveland Browns, Washington Commanders, New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs.

All five teams pick in front of the Bengals.

Breer also reported several of those teams could be interested in trading down, opening – in theory – the possibility for the Bengals to move up.

But Cincinnati hasn’t traded up in the first round of the draft since 1995, and there is no reason to believe that’s even a remote possibility this year.

Rather than looking to trade down, a team that misses out on Tate could elect to go for Lemon or Tyson to further stretch the pool of available defensive talent when the Bengals go on the clock at No. 10.

Tate is one of three Ohio State players expected to go in the Top 10, along with linebacker Sonny Styles and safety Caleb Downs.

Styles and Downs both would be great fits for defensive coordinator Al Golden’s scheme.

A handful of other Buckeyes will be at Paycor Stadium on Tuesday for the Bengals’ annual local pro day workout.

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