AFC Notes: Bengals, Browns, Ravens

Bengals

Part of the reason the Bengals felt comfortable passing on LT Penei Sewell at the top of the draft is they had a high grade on former Clemson OT Jackson Carman. Cincinnati will start Carman out at guard with the possibility of eventually kicking him out to tackle. A rave review from Clemson HC Dabo Swinney, who recommended WR Tee Higgins to them last year, helped sell them on Carman. 

“’If this guy comes back (to school), he’s a top-15 pick,’” Bengals HC Zac Taylor said he was told, via The Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr. “He’s a first-round talent, day-one ready. He’s going to walk in ready to play. I don’t say that about every player I have but saying that about the two players you have — or are about to have.”

There were some questions about a back injury Carman dealt with but it was actually a plus in the end for the Bengals that he played through the injury as well as he did. 

“He was playing through it that second half of the year, at least the last five games,” Bengals scouting director Mike Potts said. “That gives us confidence that there’s more there than he even showed on tape and his tape was extremely impressive, in our opinions. There was every reason in the world that he could have used this injury to opt out like a lot of guys did. If you have a question about this guy’s toughness, drive and the love he has for football … this guy easily could have tapped out and got the back procedure midseason and went and trained for the draft. He fought through it with his teammates.”

• Potts is also high on sixth-round C Trey Hill who might have fallen due to a meniscus injury that hurt his testing numbers: “He’s a smart, high-character guy, tough, long, versatility to play all three spots. We were really excited to get him in the sixth round. His tape is better than the sixth round, I feel strongly about that.”
• After the situation with DE Carlos Dunlap last year, the Bengals admittedly prioritize effort and character with their defensive line picks of Joseph Ossai, Cameron Sample, and Wyatt Hubert. 

Browns

• Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com says that the starters at receiver for the Browns will be WR Odell Beckham and WR Jarvis Landry. Meanwhile, WR Rashard Higgins, WR Donovan Peoples-Jones, WR KhaDarel Hodge, and rookie WR Anthony Schwartz could all rotate and compete for the remaining spots.
• At the running back spot, rookie Demetric Felton will be the third-down back, line up at receiver and return kicks. This means that RB D’Ernest Johnson could be the odd man out, according to Cabot.
• Defensively, the Browns will likely see linebackers Sione Takitaki, Anthony Walker,  Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, and Jacob Phillips competing for the starting jobs in training camp.
• Cornerbacks Greedy Williams and Greg Newsome will fight for the No. 2 job across from Denzel Ward while the new acquisition Troy Hill will play at nickel cornerback with M.J. Stewart as his backup.
• At safety, S Grant Delpit could return healthy to start across from free-agent addition John Johnson.  Cabot adds that the Browns will likely rotate in S Ronnie Harrison and S Richard LeCounte III.
• Despite probably playing three safeties in the “big nickel” package, S Sheldrick Redwine may have to compete for a roster spot.

Ravens

Ravens’ GM Eric DeCosta was upset about the team’s receiving group being questioned prior to the draft. However, he went on to select two wide receivers, including spending Baltimore’s first-round pick on WR Rashod Bateman.

“Well, it was before the draft,” DeCosta told PFT PM. “Anybody that tries to read too much into what people [are] thinking before the draft, they’re acting foolish. We’re trying to win. Everything we do is based on does this help our club win? Does this put us in the best position to win? As you know, Mike, you write about it all the time, there’s a lot of foolishness being said before the draft. Anonymous scouts and things like that. We don’t play that game. For me to stand up there and talk about how we’re going to build a team before the draft is probably not the smartest thing in the world. What I said really in my intentions was that I believe our receivers do want to be the best. They do care about that. We believe in those guys. We’re still going to build the very best team we can build at any point — now, before the season, during training camp, after the season. Whatever that might be, there’s gamesmanship involved. There’s a strategy involved. For me to go up there and say, ‘We’re going to draft a receiver in the first round,’ that would be foolish. Everybody should understand that. On the other hand, I do believe in our receivers very strongly. I do believe in those guys. I do believe in Hollywood Brown, Miles Boykin, Devin Duvernay, James Proche, Sammy Watkins. We do believe in those guys. We also believe in Rashod Bateman. We also believe in Tylan Wallace as well. We think we’ve really strengthened that class, players, and that’s going to make us a better offense.”

• Ravens RT Alejandro Villanueva‘s two-year, $14 million deal includes a $6.5 million signing bonus, a $1.5 million guaranteed base salary for 2021, and a non-guaranteed $4 million for 2022. He can also earn $2 million in roster bonuses. (Aaron Wilson)