The Cincinnati Bengals need to see a major improvement in their offensive line production this season and they hope that a third-round rookie could be a big help in the turnaround. With the 81st overall pick, Cincinnati selected Fairchild out of the University of Georgia, where he won two national championships in 2021 and 2022 as a backup.
Here’s an in-depth look at Dylan Fairchild and what he could bring to the table as a starting member of the Bengals offensive line:
Although he served as a backup in his first two years with Georgia, Fairchild worked his way to a starter beginning in 2023 and was a finalist for the Joe Moore Award, given to the top offensive lineman in college. In his second season as a starter in 2024, Fairchild was named an Associated Press Second-team All-American, Second-team All-SEC selection while starting 14 games at left guard.
Coming into the Bengals organization, Fairchild will come in with lofty expectations as a projected starter for a unit that was ranked at the bottom of the league for offensive lines. Fairchild will be the second young starter on the offensive line, joining 2024 first-round pick Amarius Mims and the two will be surrounded by veterans Orlando Brown Jr., Lucas Patrick, and Ted Karras.
One of the most important stats of Fairchild’s collegiate career is that in his two seasons as right guard for Georgia, he gave up just one sack on 787 pass-blocking snaps. The biggest question mark will be Fairchild’s move to the left guard position after playing right guard in his last two seasons in college. Fairchild is more than likely to standout for his pass protection than his run blocking, but with the health and protection of Joe Burrow coming as the utmost importance, Fairchild could impress in his first season.
Fairchild will have an opportunity to be molded by new offensive line coach Scott Peters, who had previous stops with the New England Patriots and Cleveland Browns. If Fairchild and Mims can rise to the occasion as young talents, the Bengals offensive line should see a vast improvement in comparison to last year. A third-round pick with plenty of talent and open opportunity, Fairchild could become a great value pick for Cincinnati.
