Bengals Target Navy’s First All-American In 50 Years—NFL Combine Never Invited Landon Robinson

Somewhere in Akron, Ohio, a kid grew up watching the Bengals in a house surrounded by Browns fans. His dad picked Cincinnati. No logic to it, no family connection, just preference. That kid became a co-captain at the Naval Academy, a 5’11” nose guard who wasn’t supposed to terrorize anybody at the next level. Then the NFL Combine published its 2026 invite list: 319 names. His wasn’t on it. What happened next made five NFL teams show up anyway.

The Numbers Nobody Could Ignore

Landon Robinson stacked 153 tackles, 18.5 tackles for loss, and 14.5 sacks across just 38 career games at Navy. He earned First-Team All-American honors from the Associated Press, the Football Writers Association, Sports Illustrated, and USA Today. He became the first Navy defensive player to receive that distinction in 50 years, since Chet Moeller in 1975. He also became the first Navy player ever named American Conference Defensive Player of the Year. All while carrying a 3.36 GPA in cyber operations. And the Combine still said no.

The Snub That Backfired

Most prospects need the Combine to prove they belong. Robinson needed it to prove he existed to the mainstream. Without an invite, he showed up to Navy’s pro day and posted a 9.46 Relative Athletic Score, exceptional among all defensive tackles in this class. That score measures speed, explosiveness, and agility relative to position. Robinson didn’t just pass. He ranked as an elite athlete at a position where everyone outweighs him. The assumption that Combine exclusion equals irrelevance started cracking right there on the turf.

Three Inches, Two Rounds

Robinson stands 5’11”, 291 pounds. Steelers Depot graded him 8.2, projecting long-time starter potential, and wrote: “Wholeheartedly, I believe Robinson would be discussed as a near Day 1 prospect if he were 6’2″.” Bleacher Report graded him 5.8. Sixth-round backup. Same player. Same film. Same production. The only variable: height. Three inches separate a potential first-round conversation from a late-round afterthought. That 2.4-point grade gap across two outlets tells you everything about how the NFL values a tape measure over a game tape.

The Bengals Kept Showing Up

Cincinnati didn’t stumble onto Robinson. They built a file. Bengals defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery coached at the East-West Shrine Bowl, putting him up close with draft-eligible linemen including Robinson. The team scouted his Navy pro day. They held prior meetings starting in January. Then on April 15, they brought him to Paycor Stadium for an official top-30 visit. Four documented contact points across four months. That final visit was Robinson’s last team meeting before the April 23 draft. The Bengals positioned themselves as the closing argument.

The Grade Gap Nobody Talks About

Consensus trackers place Robinson well outside the Day 1 and Day 2 conversation, while certain film-focused evaluators have him as a steal. Steelers Depot called him “one of the true steals of this draft.” That spread, from potential steal to near-irrelevance, reveals a scouting market split wide open. Film-focused evaluators see a starter. Consensus-driven models see a backup. Robinson’s production rate projects to roughly 6 sacks over a 16-game NFL season. Somebody’s math is badly wrong.

Five Teams, One Late-Round Prospect

Robinson himself named the suitors: “I had great meetings with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, New York Jets, and the Los Angeles Chargers.” Five NFL franchises investing time and travel in a prospect consensus says belongs in the sixth round. That volume of attention contradicts the ranking entirely. If Robinson were truly a fringe pick, one team might take a flier. Five teams conducting formal evaluations signals a market correction happening in real time, before the consensus catches up.

The Combine’s Blind Spot

Robinson’s path exposes something structural. The Combine excluded a four-publication All-American. His pro day proved elite athleticism without Indianapolis. Five teams pursued him anyway. The Bengals built a four-month scouting relationship independent of Combine data. Once you see it, the pattern is obvious: the Combine filtered Robinson out, and the teams that trusted film over the invite list found him anyway. Robinson is the first Navy player to win conference Defensive Player of the Year. The system missed him. The scouts who ignored the system didn’t.

Cincinnati’s Draft Math

The Bengals hold eight picks, including No. 110 in the fourth round and two sixth-rounders at 189 and 199. They have no fifth-round selection. Interior defensive line ranks as Cincinnati’s primary need entering the draft. Robinson fits the window perfectly. If he falls to the sixth round, the Bengals grab him at a discount. If another team reaches earlier, Cincinnati could use pick 110 to secure him. Either way, the draft board creates a scenario where Robinson and the Bengals collide somewhere between rounds four and six.

Dad’s Team, Son’s Dream

“He grew up watching the Bengals a lot because his dad was a fan of the team, and they are at the top of his list when it comes to potential NFL homes.” That’s Robinson describing what most prospects never get: alignment between where he wants to play and where a team wants him. His father Lance, a former Kent State gymnast, picked Cincinnati from the middle of Browns country. Now the son who inherited that loyalty could hear his name called by the franchise his dad chose on pure faith. The Bengals would get something no draft board measures: a player who’s been waiting his whole life to wear the stripes.