With eight selections in the 2026 NFL Draft, the Cincinnati Bengals will soon add a group of youth to the roster. It all starts on April 23, where the Bengals have the 10th overall pick in the first round, and fans have spent the last few months speculating who might be joining Cincinnati.
recently, athleticBengals insider, Paul Dehner Jr. made his prediction. As many other analysts have predicted in the Bengals mock, Dehner predicted that Cincinnati would add to their secondary by making Tennessee cornerback, Jermod McCoy, the tenth overall pick in the first round.
"Who would be most likely to slide down the board? Possibly a player coming off a knee injury who missed 2025." athletic's Draft expert, Dan Brugler, reported that some teams had taken McCoy off their draft boards because of his knee. The Bengals won't be one of them, and it's hard to see them surpassing one of the top two cornerbacks at this point in the draft when you put together all the moves they've made on defense this offseason. The hole is clear in the short and long term. With elite tape, a ball-hawking reputation and an SEC background, McCoy is the most athletic corner in this draft. This checks a lot of the Bengals boxes.
Paul Dehner Jr.'s Cincinnati Bengals Draft Prediction
McCoy is considered the second-best cornerback in the 2026 draft class. Nevertheless, he missed the entire 2025 season due to a torn ACL, and he is still viewed as a lock for the first round. It makes one wonder whether he would have been classified as the best cornerback if McCoy had not suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Either way, it shows that the film McCoy put on tape at Oregon State in 2023 and Tennessee in 2024 is strong enough for NFL evaluators to remain very high on his pro prospects. McCoy recorded two interceptions in his first season and four interceptions in his second season. There's certainly more to come in the NFL, and Cincinnati could be an ideal landing spot for the 6-foot-1, 188-pound corner.
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