ESPN Projects Bengals Top Offseason Need, NFL Draft Fix

 ESPN's Aaron Schatz started nailing down offseason needs for all 32 NFL teams and landed on wide receiver as the Bengals top hole in a few months. It makes sense with Tee Higgins seemingly on the way out and no players rising up behind him so far.

"Cincinnati isn't likely to franchise-tag Tee Higgins again," Schatz wrote. "Second-year wideout Andrei Iosivas has just 15 catches for 199 yards, though he does have four touchdowns. Even if the Bengals trust Iosivas in the slot, they'll still need a new playmaker on the outside."

Fellow ESPN writer Matt Miller likes Missouri wide receiver Luther Burden for Cincinnati in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft.

"The 5-foot-11, 208-pound Burden has developed into a legitimate deep threat who can produce even when Missouri's offense is struggling," Miller wrote. "He has the strength and start-stop speed to open the field opposite Ja'Marr Chase."

Burden is currently the 16th-best player on the consensus 2025 big board and the second-best wide receiver.