For the first time this season, Bengals radio analyst and former offensive linebacker Dave Lapham shared his thoughts on what the Bengals should do with their fifth overall pick.
Lapham appeared on Lance McAllister’s 700 WLW Sports Talk on Thursday night and was asked what the Bengals should do (not shall do) with their first round choice. He talked about the top three prospects, Penei Sewell, Ja’Marr Chase, and Kyle Pitts, and eventually leaned more toward one of the three.
‘Who gives you 70 snaps and who gives you 70 snaps that can best help your team? I lean towards the branch. I lean towards Sewell. Here is a guy who will give you 70 snaps per game if you are on average 65-70 [offensive] slap. He will help Joe Burrow. He will help Joe Mixon. He will help the recipients because he will give Joe Burrow time. He will help his teammates on the offensive line. I think the ripple effect of a man like when Anthony Muñoz was drafted. There’s an example: the ripple effect of excellence, and I’m telling you that it raises everyone’s game level … These kind of guys can increase your organization in a myriad of ways. I just think that if it’s not Sewell, if they (Rashawn) Slater think better than Sewell, whoever it’s in that offensive position, I’ll probably tend to go that way. ”
An offensive linebacker chooses an offensive linebacker.
The Munoz Comparison for Sewell appeared quite a few times during this pre-design process, with ESPN’s Mel Kiper being among the first to put it there. Lapham played alongside Muñoz for three years and clearly admires his talent and work ethic.
Earlier on Thursday, Muñoz himself, the first Bengal player ever to join the Ring of Honor, endorsed ‘The guy from Eugene, Oregon’, so there you go; an agreement between fellow blockers.
Where Lapham differs from Muñoz is whether Slater is in the game for the fifth overall. Muñoz did not talk about Slater, but he did answer a question about Sewell specifically.
Lapham, who traditionally have an indoor track on which the Bengals are targeting in the draft, will surely be asked for his prediction for the fifth overall pick in the coming days. But if it belonged to him, he would take the linebacker. Because of course he would.