The Bengals have placed 23-year old cornerback Brandon Ghee on the Injured Reserve List with a groin injury.  Ghee played in 6 games for the Bengals this year and he had 9 tackles.  Ghee was a third round pick out of Wake Forest so the Bengals expected more out of him.  Maybe he will turn things around next year for the Bengals.

WR Jordan Shipley (3rd round out of Texas) and TE Jermaine Gresham (1st round out of Oklahoma) have given Carson Palmer two solid targets other than Chad Ocho Cinco and Terrell Owens.  Shipley has been doing the dirty work over the middle of the field for the Bengals so far this year.  He has played in 10 games so far this year and he has 40 catches for 518 yards (13.0 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  Jermaine Gresham has given Palmer a big, physical target.  He has played in 11 games for the Bengals so far this year and he has 44 catches for 366 yards (8.3 avg) with 3 TD grabs so far this year.  Shipley & Gresham are going to be big parts of the Bengals’ offense both now and in the future.

The Bengals have picked OG Reggie Stephens with the 228th overall pick (7th round) of the NFL Draft.  He is a massive man at 6’2″, 322 pounds but he is not much of a athlete as he has next to no athletic ability.  Stephens played in 12 games (all starts) for Iowa State last season and he played in 43 games (40 starts) in his four years there.  If the Bengals can get Stephens in better shape and they can coach him up Stephens might get some P.T. down the road for them.

The Bengals have picked WR Dezmon Briscoe with the 191st overall pick (6th round) in the NFL Draft.  Briscoe has great size at 6’3″, 200 pounds and he runs a 4.55 40.  Briscoe is a outstanding possession receiver with the power to run over defensive players.  He is not a burner by any means but most draft experts had him going in the 2nd or 3rd round so the Bengals got outstanding value with this pick.  Briscoe played in 11 games (10 starts) for Kansas last season in which he caught 84 passes for 1,337 yards (15.9 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  He played in 37 games (33 starts) in his three years in college and he caught 219 passes for 3,240 yards (14.8 avg) with 31 TD grabs.  This was a solid pick for the Bengals as Briscoe has a nice upside.

The Bengals have picked OT Otis Hudson with the 152nd overall pick (5th round) of the NFL Draft.  Hudson was likely a reach by the Bengals as most draft experts didn’t think he would get drafted.  He will need coached up as he played his college ball against inferior competition at Eastern Illinois.  Hudson does have outstanding size at 6’5″, 331 pounds so maybe down the road he will be able to help the offensive line.

The Bengals have picked OLB Rod Muckelroy with the 131rd overall pick (4th round) of the NFL Draft.  Muckelroy is a good athelte at 6’1″, 236 pounds and he runs a 4.7 40.  Muckelroy plays all out as he has a very high motor which should get him on the field quickly for the Bengals.  He played in 13 games (all starts) for Texas last season in which he had 102 tackles, 11 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks, he broke up 5 passes and he had 1 interception.  Muckelroy played in 42 games (30 starts) in his time with the Longhorns in which he made 283 tackles, 23.5 tackles for a loss, he had 5.5 sacks, broke up 9 passes and he had 2 interceptions.  This was a good pick for the Bengals as Muckelroy could develop into a starter down the road and maybe be a special teams ace from day #1.

The Bengals have picked DT Geno Atkins out of Georgia with the 120th overall pick (4th round) of the NFL Draft.  Atkins is a bit undersized at 6’1″, 286 pounds and he doesn’t always play his hardest every down.  That means it will be up to the Bengals’ coaches to be on him all the time to get him to play up to his ability.  Atkins played in 13 games (3 starts) at Georgia last season in which he finished up with 36 tackles, 10.5 tackles for a loss, he had 3 sacks, forced 1 fumble and he recovered 1 fumble.  Atkins played in 50 games (23 starts) in his four years at Georgia and he finished up with 106 tackles, 33.5 tackles for a loss, he had 11 sacks, broke up 2 passes, he forced 1 fumble and he recovered 1 fumble.  This is a boom or bust pick for the Bengals as Atkins could either develop into a starting tackle in the NFL or he could just as easily be out of the league in three years.

The Bengals have selected CB Brandon Ghee with the 96th overall pick (3rd round) out of Wake Forest.  Ghee is 5’11″, 189 pounds but he is lightning fast running a 4.4 40.  Ghee is a outstanding special teams player and he will likely make his biggest mark on the Bengals next season there.  He will serve as a nickel back as long as Leon Hall and Jonathan Joseph start the 2010 season healthy.  Ghee just needs to get a little bit tougher against the running game but that in something that could happen in practice before the season starts.  Ghee played in 11 games (all starts) at Wake Forest last season and he had 52 tackles, broke up 8 passes and he had 1 fumble recovery.  Ghee played in 35 games (33 starts) in his three years in college and he had 150 tackles, broke up 25 passes, he had 1 interception, forced 5 fumbles and he recovered 1 fumble.  The Bengals got themselves quality depth in the secondary and a special teams ace in Ghee so I like the pick.

The Bengals needed a slot receiver and they got a good one in Jordan Shipley out of Texas.  They used the 84th overall pick (third round) on Shipley.  Without putting too much pressure on Shipley he reminds me a lot of Wes Welker.  He will help the Bengals in a lot of areas as he was a holder for kicks and he returned punts and kickoffs at Texas.  Shipley is small at 5’11″, 190 pounds and he runs a 4.55 40 as he is not the fastest guys around, but, he has good moves after the catch and he lives for going over the middle.  Shipley played in 14 games (all starts) with the Longhorns last season and he caught 116 passes for 1,485 yards (12.8 avg) with 13 TD grabs.  He played in 53 games (35 starts) in his four years in Texas in which he caught 248 passes for 3,191 yards (12.9 avg) with 33 career TD grabs.  This was another solid pick for the Bengals as Shipley is a tough little football player.

The Bengals got great value in drafting DE Carlos Dunlap out of Florida with the 54th overall pick (2nd round) of the NFL Draft.  Many experts projected Dunlap to be picked in the first round of the NFL Draft.  Dunlap is a big guy at 6’6″, 275 pounds and he’s fast running a 4.7 40.  He lived in the opposing backfield at Florida and he gets his arms up to block passes.  He played in 13 games (all starts) for the Gators last season and he made 38 tackles, had 10.5 tackles for a loss, he had 9 sacks and he batted down 6 passes.  Dunlap played in 39 games (15 starts) in his three years at Florida and he had 75 tackles, 26 tackles for a loss, 19.5 sacks, batted down 8 passes and he forced 2 fumbles.  Dunlap is also solid against the running game due to his size.  I like this pick a lot for the Bengals as Dunlap has a nice upside.