Booger McFarland felt so strongly that the Cincinnati Bengals should select an offensive lineman with their first-round pick Thursday night in the 2021 NFL Draft that McFarland said during ESPN's coverage that it would be "malpractice" to take a player that couldn't protect quarterback Joe Burrow.
"If they don't draft an offensive lineman, they're committing malpractice," McFarland said before NFL commissioner Roger Goodell announced the Bengals' pick. "The last time we saw Joe Burrow, his knee was going the wrong way. You have to protect your franchise quarterback. They have to take an offensive lineman."
The Bengals took LSU receiver Ja'Marr Chase at No. 5. The Detroit Lions took Oregon offensive tackle Penei Sewell two picks later at No. 7.
"Wow. Wow. Well he's a special receiver - he's an X receiver - you can put him out there against the best DBs in the NFL and say, 'Hey, I'm not gonna run motion for you. I'm not gonna do anything. It's gonna be one-on-one coverage and you can go out there and win.' He can do it all. He's big, he's physical ... and here's the thing I love about him: There's not anything he can't do," McFarland said after the pick. "He's everything that you want in a No. 1 receiver. ... But think about - Burrow played 10 games, 32 sacks. He was on pace to be sacked 51 times. I just can't get that out of my head. Love the player - love my LSU guy - but I just can't get that out of my head."
From PFF's Andrew Russell via Twitter:
Last December, the Bengals' official Twitter account noted that McFarland was "off 'by a lot'" with his Monday Night Countdown prediction that the Pittsburgh Steelers would beat Cincinnati "by a lot." The Bengals stunned the Steelers, 27-17.
In 2019, McFarland said former Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis enabled Vontaze Burfict's controversial behavior as a player.
LOVE SPORTS? [ Subscribe now for unlimited access to Cincinnati.com ]
Source link
