After going defense heavy with their first two picks in the NFL draft, the Cincinnati Bengals went back the other way in the fourth round by picking Auburn center Connor Lew at No. 128 overall.

This move comes on the heels of a Bengals trade with the Jets. It also follows the Bengals boosting the pass rush with Cashius Howell in the second round and the Bengals taking a unique cornerback, Tacario Davis, in the third round.

This was one of those inevitable-feeling picks for the Bengals: They needed to think about life after Ted Karras.

Karras is getting up there in age and working on short-term contracts now. They also just released Matt Lee at an odd time before the draft.

So, here comes Lew, who, according to Lance Zierlein of NFL.com, could “eventually be an average starter.”

“He can bump and climb with good fluidity,” Zierlein wrote. “He’s average as a drive blocker and needs to play with better consistency to mirror the rush without over-setting. His frame and game will continue to improve with time. Lew’s toughness, intelligence and leadership give him a slight grade bump and are core traits that should make him a solid starter.”

That has Bengals written all over it, really, even if Lew is still working back from an ACL injury from October 2025.

A fun note here? Lew is still just 20 years old, so he’s got some big upside and loads of game and captain experience despite being such a young prospect.

Granted, the Bengals have cycled through Matt Lee-type players as developmental guys on the interior for years now. But Lew feels like a guy with an odd mixture of youth and experience that could really boom.

And in this range, after a smooth trade, it’s a good value to still probably get the guy they were targeting all along.

This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Instant analysis of Bengals picking Connor Lew in the fourth round