April 26th, 2011 
Eric McMackin 
Posted in 
Could the Texans make a perfect trade partner with the Bengals?
PFT has a piece about the Texans’ draft strategy heading into Thursday night’s first round. John McClain of the Houston Chronicle (not the Die Hard guy) thinks the Texans will push to move up from the 11th pick in order to select LB Von Miller or CB Patrick Peterson.
He speculates that the team would be unable to trade up any earlier than five. However, this sounds like an enticing scenario for the Bengals. Assuming the Panthers take Cam Newton at number 1, and the Broncos take DT Marcell Dareus at 2, the Bills will either go LB Von Miller or QB Blaine Gabbert at 3. Assuming they go Miller (as most speculate), then the Bengals could be in the catbird seat with Arizona doubtlessly considering Peterson at five.
The Texans could package their first round pick (11), along with a 3rd rounder and 5th rounder for Cincinnati’s pick at 4. This trade up package was also suggested by a Texans blog here.
This seems like an ideal situation for the Bengals. At 11 they may still have a shot at Gabbert or WR Julio Jones, whom many believe they like. This would also be the appropriate range for QB Jake Locker or CB Prince Amukamara. The additional 3rd rounder could likewise allow the team to trade back up into the late first round by packaging it with their second round pick to snag QBs Christian Ponder or Andy Dalton.
The buzz around the Texans seems to suggest they are desperate for a game breaker on the defensive side of the ball and they are willing to make a deal to secure one. The Bengals appear to be in the right spot to capitalize and maximize this draft.
Which of course means they will sit on their hands.
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