Even after months of work, the Bengals face some difficult choices this week heading into the NFL draft.

        The decision of whom to pick in the first round Saturday certainly appears to be more complicated than the choice the club had to make a year ago.

        At this time in 2001, the Bengals were pretty well set on whom they would take with their fourth overall pick; either offensive tackles Leonard Davis or Kenyatta Walker, or defensive end Justin Smith. Davis went to Arizona at No. 2. That left Smith and Walker available. The Bengals took Smith.

        This year, after a 6-10 season that dropped them to the 10th overall pick — their lowest first-round pick since 1998 — the Bengals' choices are not nearly as clear.

        They could conceivably take a cornerback, safety, defensive lineman or quarterback. And depending on whether Bryant McKinnie or Mike Williams is available, the Bengals could take an offensive tackle.

        The good news for the Bengals is this draft is deep at several positions — tight end, cornerback, safety and defensive line — and that could help the Bengals.

        The bad news for the Bengals is there is no real consensus of what the nine teams drafting ahead of them will do, other than the expansion Houston Texans, who already are negotiating with Fresno State quarterback David Carr.

        • The biggest question again is quarterback. Behind Carr, Oregon's Joey Harrington is the best quarterback available, and several experts — including ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. — revised their mock drafts to place Harrington in Cincinnati. The Bengals were unable to sign free agent quarterbacks Trent Dilfer or Elvis Grbac.

        Harrington would be the Bengals' second first-round QB pick from Oregon in the past four drafts. They made Akili Smith the No.3 overall pick in 1999 and are still waiting for him to deliver on his promise.

        Would Harrington be the smartest pick for a team whose management insists it's a consistent pass offense away from the playoffs? Or would the Bengals be better off drafting a player at another position who could make a more immediate contribution? Will a second year together help both incumbent quarterback Jon Kitna and the corps of young wide receivers?

        Sports Illustrated's Peter King predicts the Bengals will trade with the Detroit Lions for their third pick to take Harrington.

        • The top three defensive backs in the draft are cornerbacks Quentin Jammer and Phillip Buchanon and safety Roy Williams.

        But the Bengals just signed corners Artrell Hawkins and Jeff Burris, who are projected starters. Do they go after another cornerback and move Burris to free safety? Or, if he's available, do they take Williams, the Oklahoma safety who was the only defensive player to receive Heisman Trophy votes?

        • The Bengals had just 29 receptions, 281 receiving yards and one touchdown from their tight ends in 2001. And they need more from that position to fully realize the potential of coordinator Bob Bratkowski's offense and to make use of a pass down the middle of the field that's among the best balls Kitna throws.

        Bengals scouts say there are six or seven tight ends in the draft who are potential rookie starters. Do they take one of them in the first round, or can they wait until the second or third round? And what about Sean Brewer, last year's No.3 pick who missed all of the season with a groin injury? Can he be counted on to be healthy and productive?

        Or is the best move to wait until the draft and try to sell former Colts tight end Ken Dilger — a 2001 Pro Bowler — on Cincinnati's proximity to his southern Indiana home?

        • Draft forecasters collectively say there are some 15 players who will be gone when Bengals draft at No.10. Get it? Nine teams can't draft 15 players. So one of the top two offensive tackles, McKinnie or Mike Williams, could be there.

        If so, is now the time to take the franchise left tackle and groom him in the one year that the Richmond Webb-John Jackson combination appears to have left? Other top tackles in the draft are Mike Pearson of Florida and Marc Colombo of Boston College, and Colombo is expected to be available for the Bengals in the second round.

        • In one season, the Bengals' defensive line evolved from weakness to strength, accounting for most of the team's franchise-record 48 sacks.

        Like 2001, when the Bengals used the No.4 overall pick on defensive end Justin Smith, the 2002 draft is stocked with defensive linemen.

        Do the Bengals add to a strength by drafting Wisconsin tackle Wendell Bryant, North Carolina's Ryan Sims or either of Tennessee's twin stars, John Henderson or Albert Haynesworth?

        The Bengals aren't tipping their hand. Club president Mike Brown, for one, has been uncharacteristically vague.

        Convinced his team needs a productive quarterback to win, can Brown resist taking his third quarterback in the first round since he has been running the team?

        It has been 10 years since he surprised his coaches and scouts and drafted quarterback David Klingler instead of cornerback Troy Vincent.

        Brown might face the same type of choice Saturday.

Bengals' forecast for draft is hazy SULLIVAN: Persuasion needed to bag Bledsoe Bengals Q&A with Mark Curnutte NFL: Dallas, Hardy close to deal

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