As much attention that has been paid to the Oakland Raiders’ pick of Darrius Heyward-Bey at #7 overall in last weekend’s NFL Draft, it hasn‘t gone unnoticed that what happened with the pick before them was something similarly unsurprising and risky.
A left tackle was a top priority for Cincinnati, and though Baylor’s Jason Smith was off the board at #2 to St. Louis. However, instead of going with the safe pick in Monroe, the Bengals went with Smith, who at one time was considered the top prospect in the 2009 NFL Draft until he sent with a couple of poor decisions.
The first thing out of your mouth might be to say that this is an unsurprising pick based on the Bengals’ recent history of taking on players who have issues, whether they’re of the criminal or character variety.
Along with that, there’s a rather notable list of highly-drafted busts among the Bengals’ first-round draft picks. There’s David Klingler, Dan Wilkinson, Ki-Jana Carter, Akili Smith, Peter Warrick, so on and so on.
But, rather than simply making a generalization based on either of those unflattering bits, you have to try to look at every case individually. And though he wasn’t included on our list of likely 2009 NFL Draft busts, there’s every reason to think that Smith could turn out to be at the top of that list in a few years’ time.
Based on sheer talent and his body of work over the last three seasons at Alabama, Smith has the ability and potential to be a mainstay on the Bengals’ line for the next decade-plus. Thinking long term, with another talented young tackle on the other side in Anthony Collins, the Bengals could have their ends of their line solidified for a long time. In the short term, he should be an immediate boost to an offense that surrendered 51 sacks in 2008 and averaged only 3.6 yards per carry on the ground.
However, there’s a reason why Cincinnati is even in a position of having to actually defend their selection of Smith.
I don’t think they’re going to have to worry about him going and getting himself in the slammer. But, he was suspended for the Sugar Bowl because he wasn’t truthful with his coach, and then came Smith’s combine disappearance episode, when he left without telling anyone and sent his draft stock spiraling downward. He didn’t exactly improve his situation at his Pro Day in March, but it seems the Bengals saw what they needed to see in him to justify taking him at #6.
The good thing for Cincinnati is that, despite having a number of misses with their first-round picks, they’ve had some good history with left tackles. In 1996, the Bengals took Willie Anderson 10th overall, and Anderson went on to be voted to four Pro Bowls in his 12 seasons with the Bengals before his release last season. Oh, and then there’s Anthony Munoz, who was drafted #3 overall in 1980, and all he did was go on to make 11 Pro Bowls, be known as one of the greatest offensive linemen in NFL history, and be the first Bengal inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1998.
Levi Jones has anchored the left side for the last several seasons, but with the veteran set to be released, that clears the way for Smith to start from the outset. That’s a lot of pressure for a rookie to handle, especially when you have the task of protecting one of the league’s best quarterbacks in Carson Palmer, who happens to be coming off of the second serious injury of his career. On top of that, this is a must-win year for Marvin Lewis’ job security, and last but not least, the microscope that Smith is and will be under for the last few months and for the Bengals’ selection of him.
Will Smith step up and dominate this challenge like he’s so easily dominated opposing defenders for the last several years? Or will he wilt under the pressure and become another unflattering footnote in Bengals’ draft history? If it’s the Andre Smith we’ve seen for the past several years, the Bengals will come out looking like geniuses. But if it’s the Andre Smith we’ve seen over the last few months, then he could wind up being just another negative footnote in Bengals’ history.
Do you think the Bengals made the right choice by taking Andre Smith, or will they come to regret it?
