NFL Draft: Cincinnati Bearcats Primed For NFL

After a phenomenal season for the Cincinnati Bearcats, which ended with them losing in the College Football Playoffs, how high can their prospects go in the 2022 NFL Draft? Click here to read more.

If you followed college football this past season, you saw the Cincinnati Bearcats become the first "group of five" school to make it into the College Football Playoffs and have the only undefeated season of 2021. They were one of the nation's most talented teams on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. 

Cincinnati Bearcat Prospects in the 2022 NFL Draft

Though they ultimately lost to Alabama in the semi-finals, they proved that they not only belonged but could hang with any team. If the Cincinnati offense could have put something together, the team would have had a real chance of winning as their defense held the Alabama offense in check until the fourth quarter. This was also one of the most experienced teams in the country, and with all their talent, this could be a historic draft for the Bearcats. 

With this in mind, the all-star game phase of the draft season could be a real statement maker for the prospects from Cincinnati. If you're wondering why this team is special enough to focus this solely on them, it's because you had an entire program buy into what their head coach was preaching and then everyone who could come back to school for one more season. After all, they truly believed they could be special and then went on to do exactly what they set out to do. That is rare in today's college atmosphere, and it should be recognized. Especially the job that the coaching staff has done, so kudos Coach Fickell.

Cornerback Ahmad Gardner

Gardner can compete for the first cornerback selected in the NFL Draft.

How high can Gardner go in the 2022 NFL Draft?

Now that the all-star phase is in the books, how did these players fare against other top-tier talents from around the country? Who were the prospects to watch, and did they live up to the hype? The wild thing is Cincinnati had many players showcasing their skills in these games, yet the best player on their team was a junior and couldn't even play in any of the games, though as you will find as we progress, this was the year of the Bearcats. 

Defensively, Cincinnati's talent was on par with National Champions Georgia. At all three levels of the defense, the Bearcats are strong all around. They had several players star in multiple all-star games, and the best player on their team isn't even a senior, so he couldn't play in an NFL Draft all-star game. Gardner is, without a doubt, the best cornerback in the entire draft and is potentially the number one pick. In his whole career at Cincinnati, he never once gave up a touchdown, and that can't be understated. 

His counterpart at cornerback Coby Bryant is no slouch either. He is fantastic in coverage and plays very physical. He showed great toughness in the Senior Bowl, as he was run over by Florida running back and stayed with the play, making the tackle. 

Linebacker Darrian Beavers

Beavers is an underrated linebacker that helped himself in the 2022 Reese's Senior Bowl.

Is Beavers being overlooked in the 2022 NFL Draft?

Linebacker Darrian Beavers is one of the more underrated defensive players in the draft. He is a big linebacker but can play sideline to sideline and did a bit of everything for the Cincinnati defense. He showed a lot of range in the Senior Bowl and should have helped boost his draft stock because of it. 

Upfront Myjai Sanders was getting pressure on the opposing quarterbacks all game long. He is a very strong pass rusher who always seems to be causing havoc in the backfield. 

They also have a few other players that didn't get all the praise but will be good late-round draft picks, like defensive tackle Curtis Brooks, linebacker Deshawn Pace and safety Bryan Cook. 

On the offensive side of the ball, the skill positions were tremendous. The one weakness that is being said very loosely is the offensive line, which is the one unit that still needs to be improved. Though they were a good group of linemen and played very well most of the season, they struggled against elite defenses. 

Quarterback Desmond Ridder

At the 2022 Reese's Senior Bowl, Ridder helped his NFL Draft stock in a big way.

Did Ridder do enough to be considered a first-round pick?

At quarterback was the team captain, senior Desmond Ridder. Ridder could have entered the draft last year, but he is one of the guys that knew this team could be great and stayed for his final season. This ended up being a great decision for him because he had a fantastic year, and then he showed his stuff to everyone at the Senior Bowl by winning Offensive Player of the Game with two touchdowns. He was already known as a great leader and could be a solid NFL quarterback, but his performance in Mobile likely helped his draft stock. 

This year, Cincinnati had a phenomenal run game led by Alabama transfer Jerome Ford. A home run hitting running back, Ford proved to be a game-changer for his team. He not only could make a big play at any moment, but he is also a powerful runner and is great at running between the tackles. 

Receiving Weapons Alec Pierce and Josh Whyle

The Bearcats have two tremendous receiving weapons entering the 2022 NFL Draft.

Is Alec Pierce a first-round pick and how high can Josh Whyle go in the 2022 NFL Draft?

The Cincinnati pass game had many weapons but was led by receiver Alec Pierce and tight end Josh Whyle. Pierce is a tall and athletic wide receiver with great hands and was one of the country's top deep ball threats. Whyle was fifth on the team in receiving yards but was lethal in the red zone catching six touchdowns. He is a very good athlete and is a complete tight end, who is a great receiver and is very good at blocking in the run game. 

Overall, Cincinnati proved to be one of the best teams in the country, and it needed to be celebrated because they showed you don't have to be from a "Power Five" school to compete for championships. This has been denied to teams for much too long; it truly is outstanding to see a team shatter the glass ceiling. With that being said, congratulations Coach Fickell and the rest of the Bearcats, you did it. 

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• Reese’s Senior Bowl – February 6^th, 2022 (Mobile, AL)
• East-West Shrine Bowl – February 3^rd, 2022 (Las Vegas, NV)
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• SPIRAL Tropical Bowl – January 17^th, 2022 (Orlando, FL)
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