Bengals Sign Rookie Billy Price

The Bengals have signed first-round draft pick Billy Price, according to a team announcement. Per the terms of his slot as the No. 21 overall pick, Price will earn $11.7MM over the course of his four-year deal. And, as a first-round pick, the Bengals will have the option to tack a fifth year on to his deal down the line. 

Price suffered a torn pectoral muscle while doing the bench press at the draft combine in February. Fortunately, he rebounded quickly from the injury and put himself squarely back into the first round conversation. The Bengals believe that he will be back to full health this summer, which should allow him to be the team’s starting center in 2018.

Last year, Pro Football Focus’ collegiate arm gave Price an 83.2 overall grade for his work at Ohio State, positioning him as the fifth-best center in college football. Clearly, Price transitioned well to the new position after spending his first two years at left guard and his third year at right guard.

As shown on Roster Resource, the Bengals project to start Cordy Glenn, Clint Boling, Price, Trey Hopkins, and Jake Fisher on the offensive line. The Bengals are hoping for significant improvement from last year when their O-Line was ranked near the bottom of the league by virtually every measure.

As of this writing, the Bengals have just two players left to sign in their 2018 draft class in third-round picks Sam Hubbard (DE, Ohio State) and Malik Jefferson (LB, Texas).

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