With The First Pick
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Cincinnati Bengals clinch first pick in the 2020 NFL Draft

By Joseph Yun

ARLINGTON, TX - APRIL 26: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announces a pick by the Cincinnati Bengals during the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft at AT&T Stadium on April 26, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - APRIL 26: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announces a pick by the Cincinnati Bengals during the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft at AT&T Stadium on April 26, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
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The Bengals, with the thrilling overtime loss to the Dolphins have clinched the first overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. What’s next for the organization?

The Cincinnati Bengals franchise has struggled under rookie head coach Zac Taylor, falling to a league worst 1-14 record and clinched the worst record in the NFL with one week to spare, thus clinching the first pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. The second worst record belongs to the Washington Redskins at 3-12 entering Week 17.

How did we get here? 

The Bengals suffered through a rash of injuries, particularly along the offensive line, losing first round selection left tackle Jonah Williams among other linemen as well. The A.J. Green injury during the preseason did not help either. So injuries and a rookie head coach trying to implement his program are the main culprits. There are better days ahead if the draft proves bountiful for the Bengals as it has in the past.

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What’s next?

The wide consensus among the NFL world is that the Bengals should take the Heisman winner and Ohio native LSU quarterback Joey Burrow. It’s true that they need a quarterback to guide their franchise after Andy Dalton proved incapable of maintaining any consistency and the backup, Ryan Finley proved that he isn’t ready to be an NFL starter if at all.

The front office has earned a bit of credit as a solid drafting team over the past few years so maybe that reputation keeps on going in the 2020 draft. They will need to hit on a lot of their early picks as the offense could be significantly retooled in the offseason. The team won’t fire Taylor after just one season since they were so loyal to Marvin Lewis for almost two decades.

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Andy Dalton will most likely move on since his contract contains no more guarantees and A.J. Green could be on the move as well. The core pieces are there for a rookie QB (Burrow) to slide in and take control of the reins or should they shock the world and not take Burrow, fortifying their defense with Chase Young.

It will be an interesting offseason in the state of Ohio, that’s for sure.

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