Should the Bengals Tap the Crimson Connection Again and Draft JC Latham?

CINCINNATI – When the 2024 NFL Draft kicks off on April 25, it will be five years to the day since Zac Taylor’s first as head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals.

On April 25, 2019, the Bengals drafted an offensive tackle from Alabama. On April 25, 2024, will they do the same?

Since the day the 2023 season ended with a 31-14 victory against the backup Cleveland Browns, offensive tackle has felt like the probable first-round target for a Cincinnati team that was expecting to watch Jonah Williams — Taylor’s first draft pick — walk away in free agency.

And Alabama ties aside, JC Latham has had the feel of a likely target based on his hierarchy in one of the best tackle classes in recent years coupled with the No. 18 draft slot the Bengals occupy.

Cincinnati Bengals Draft Preview: Get To Know Alabama OT JC Latham

The Basics

• Height: 6’6″
• Weight: 360 pounds
• Position: Offensive Tackle
• School: Alabama
• Current Year: Junior
• Age: 21 (Feb. 8, 2003)
• PFN Big Board Ranking: No. 15 overall, No. 4 OT

Why He’s a First-Round Talent

While some players make impressive transformations in college to go from low recruits out of high school to first-round consideration in the draft, Latham is not one of them.

He not only was a five-star recruit out of the IMG Academy but was the nation’s No. 1-ranked offensive lineman by most major outlets and the No. 2 overall prospect.

Latham appeared in 14 games as a true freshman in 2021 before moving into a starting role at right tackle in 2022 and 2023.

He was voted first-team All-SEC and second-team All-American as a junior before declaring for this year’s draft.

“I feel like I’ve been blessed to have the ability to do it all and perform at a high level in everything I do,” Latham said at the NFL Combine. “I’m only just getting started.”

Pro Football Network lead draft analyst Ian Cummings is more than on board with Latham being a top 20 pick in the draft, heaping on the praise in his draft profile of Latham.

“There isn’t a tackle in the stacked 2024 class who can generate the kind of push and displacement that Latham can, both with his power drive and his rotational torque. Not only is Latham extremely explosive and forceful, but he’s also incredibly well-leveraged. For a 6’6″ blocker, he’s extremely natural at reaching the proper pad level and loading his base.

“Latham moves people on the ground — plain and simple. The bottom line is this: Latham has the talent, mentality, technical competence, natural feel for leverage, and dominating two-phase ability to be an impact starter early in his career, and he has Pro Bowl and All-Pro upside at his peak.”

How He Would Fit

As is the case with any tackle the Bengals might draft in the early rounds later this month, Latham initially would slot as Trent Brown’s backup at right tackle but be given every chance to compete for the starting job in OTAs and training camp.

The eventual fit would be as the right tackle of the future with Cincinnati continuing its efforts to build better protection around quarterback Joe Burrow.

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If Latham is unable to beat out Brown at right tackle, it won’t necessarily relegate him to a redshirt season. A lot of scouts think his skill set would translate well to playing guard.

Cordell Volson is viewed more as the starting left guard for now rather than being the man of the future. There still is hope he can develop into that after starting every game the last two seasons, but this is a big year in the trajectory of his career, and Latham could push Volson for the starting job if Brown holds off the rookie at right tackle.

Knee Twists of Fate

In a parallel scenario, Latham could have been a first-round target of the Bengals at their other biggest position of need — defensive tackle.

At the Combine, Latham told the story of how he started playing offensive tackle literally by accident.

“I really was a defensive lineman,” he said. “Two weeks before the first game (in 2019), three guys got hurt playing basketball. All tore their ACLs/MCLs. Crazy events. They asked me and Tyler Booker to play offensive line. I didn’t even have an offseason at left tackle. I just went out there and played.”

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A year later he had every college in the country vying for his services as an offensive tackle.

Booker, the other player pressed into action on the offensive line, followed Latham to Alabama and a year from now — perhaps on April 25, 2025 — he could be following his former teammate into the NFL as a first-round pick.

Weighing the Weaknesses in Latham’s Game

There obviously is a lot to like about Latham’s tape and how he projects at the next level, which is why he’s expected to be a first-round pick.

But when it comes to possibly beating out Brown at right tackle or taking over in 2025, these are the things Latham will need to work on according to Pro Football Network lead draft analyst Ian Cummings:

• Can be a bit lumbering at times when opening his strides moving in space.
• Can’t always fully rotate and flip his hips to seal out second-level defenders in space.
• Occasionally over-extends and lurches beyond his center of gravity attacking upfield.
• Doesn’t always bring his feet with him on run blocks, which can also cause him to lurch.
• Can be baited into setting too far vertically and opening his torso to opposing power.
• Sometimes drifts too far vertically with his set angle, allowing lanes for inside counters.
• Can be worked off-balance by rushers who tug at his anchor and stress laterally.
• Sometimes bearhugs opponents when forced to recover, creating penalty risk.
• Motor occasionally fades out in space at the second level.

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