Here’s a fun one: What if the Cincinnati Bengals don’t draft Joe Burrow?
For months now, the star LSU quarterback has been the consensus top player in the 2020 NFL Draft. And after a downright miserable campaign in 2019, the Bengals own the No. 1 overall pick and seem more than comfortable with the idea of trading current signal-caller Andy Dalton.
There’s really no excuse for Cincinnati not to take Burrow. However, NBC Sports’ Peter King in his weekly column Monday floated the wild idea of the Miami Dolphins, who own the No. 5 overall selection in 2020, sending four first-round picks to the Bengals for No. 1 overall so they can draft Burrow.
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“I think, if I were Miami GM Chris Grier, and I liked Joe Burrow clearly above all other quarterbacks this year, I’d call the Bengals and offer four first-round picks for Cincinnati’s first overall pick,” King wrote. “I think, if I were Cincinnati owner Mike Brown, I’d say no — under one important condition. … The only way I say yes to the deal is if (Justin) Herbert or (Tua) Tagovailoa is 1b to Burrow’s 1a. They’d have to be very close. If they are, and if the Dolphins make my fictitious offer, the Bengals should do the deal.”
An obvious flaw in that idea: If Burrow is the franchise quarterback he’s expected to be, Miami’s first-round picks over the next few years could be mid- to late-round selections. That’s not really worth Cincy’s while when the Bengals have the option of just drafting a franchise-altering signal-caller in Burrow.
However, the Dolphins do own the fifth, 18th and 26th picks this season, as well as two first-rounders in 2021, so there’s more upside there than if the picks traded were for way down the road.
All told, if the Bengals see some things in Burrow they don’t like, then they obviously could pull off this stunner and hope for the best.
