A.J. Green Will Not Ask For New Deal
- Bengals WR A.J. Green is entering the fourth year of the five-year pact he signed in September 2015, which made him the highest-paid receiver in the league at the time. In terms of average annual value, Green is now the sixth-highest paid wideout in the game, and if Julio Jones and Odell Beckham Jr. get their way, he will be the eighth-highest paid by the time the regular season rolls around. But as Paul Dehner Jr. and Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer write, it does not sound as if Green will be asking for more money until the expiration of his current deal at the end of the 2019 season. Green supports his colleagues’ efforts to rework their existing contracts, but as for himself, he said, “I don’t really get caught up in what’s the money like because I signed my deal and it was the highest paid at that point. It’s going to always go up. So you can’t keep up with that. At the end of the day [owner Mike Brown] took care of me. I’m still under contract for the next two years and we’ll go from there.”
Bengals Boast Open RG Competition
- The Bengals are set on the left side of their offensive line, with Cordy Glenn, Clint Boling and Billy Price entrenched as starters. With 2015 high draft picks Jake Fisher and Cedric Ogbuehi, along with Giants castoff Bobby Hart, involved in the right tackle competition, Cincinnati perhaps has less certainty about who will play right guard. Former UDFAs Trey Hopkins and Alex Redmond, and 2016 fifth-rounder Christian Westerman, are going to vie for that spot, Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes. PFF’s No. 41 tackle in 2017, Hopkins is the incumbent, playing 707 snaps last season and starting 12 games.
Bengals Had Price, Ragnow Rated Evenly
- Prior to the Lions taking Arkansas interior lineman Frank Ragnow with their first-round pick, the Bengals had he and Billy Price ranked “pretty much evenly,” Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com notes. After watching the Ohio State product operate this offseason, one that didn’t feature him becoming fully cleared until Monday, the Bengals believe Price might be a better fit for their offense rather than the player who was selected one spot ahead of him. He’s expected to be Cincinnati’s starting center from Day 1.
Bengals Sign Third-Round DE Sam Hubbard
The Bengals have officially signed their entire draft class. After inking linebacker Malik Jefferson to a deal earlier today, the Bengals announced that they’ve signed fellow third-rounder Sam Hubbard.
Following three standout seasons at Ohio State, the defensive end was taken with the 77th pick during April’s draft. After redshirting as a freshman, Hubbard immediately had an impact during the 2015 campaign, compiling 6.5 sacks. He had another solid season in 2016 before establishing himself as one of the top pass-rushers in the Big Ten during the 2017 season. Hubbard ultimately finished the year with 42 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss, and seven sacks.
With Carlos Dunlap and Michael Johnson penciled in as Cincy’s starting defensive ends, it’s unlikely that Hubbard will have a chance to contribute right away. However, he’ll still have the opportunity to compete with the 2017 third-rounder Jordan Willis for backup reps.
With the signing, the Bengals have inked each of their draft picks to contracts. Besides Hubbard and Jefferson, their 2017 class includes
- 1-21: Billy Price, C (Ohio State)
- 2-54: Jessie Bates, FS (Wake Forest)
- 4-112: Mark Walton, RB (Miami)
- 5-151: Davontae Harris, CB (Illinois St.)
- 5-158: Andrew Brown, DE (Virginia)
- 5-170: Darius Phillips, CB (Western Michigan)
- 7-249: Logan Woodside, QB (Toledo)
- 7-252: Rod Taylor, OG (Mississippi)
- 7-253: Auden Tate, WR (Florida State)
Bengals Sign Rookie Malik Jefferson
Linebacker Malik Jefferson has signed his rookie deal with the Bengals, according to a tweet from his agency. Jefferson, the No. 78 overall pick in the draft, will earn $3.83MM over the course of his four-year deal.
Jefferson opted to leave Texas after his junior season and was probably expecting to go late in the first round or somewhere in the second round. He ignored the College Advisory Committee’s recommendation that he stay in school and wound up as a third-round pick. For what it’s worth, he claims he does not regret the decision.
“It’s not really good feedback,” Jefferson said. “If a guy wants to come out early, they have to make a decision on their own. Really, if you’re not like a top-10 guy coming out early, it’s just up in the air from there. You just don’t know. Anything can happen…So you can be making money for the university, struggling, trying to eat dining hall food, waking up early, having to go through extreme pressures and not getting paid for none of that. Or you can not go to school, just play football all day, study film and get better and work out all day and max yourself out.”
Instead of continuing his education without being compensated for playing, Jefferson will now back up Nick Vigil and Vontaze Burfict. After racking up 233 tackles, 25.5 tackles for loss, and six pass breakups over the course of his collegiate career, Jefferson feels like he’s prepared to play at the pro level.
Jefferson’s signing leaves Ohio State defensive end Sam Hubbard as the Bengals’ only unsigned draft pick. Hubbard went No. 77 overall, one pick before Jefferson.
Extra Points: Anthem, Giants, Rams
Last month, the NFL changed its rules regarding the national anthem, allowing players who choose to not stand to remain in the locker room. So far, the new policy has not been well-received, and this week a group of civil rights organizations asked the NFL to eliminate the new rule.
“This policy represses peaceful, non-disruptive protest of police violence against unarmed African Americans and other people of color,” the various groups wrote (via USA Today). “It is disappointing that a league built on grit and competition lacks the constitution to stomach a call for basic equality and fairness.”
The groups want to meet with Roger Goodell to discuss the situation, but it’s not clear whether he’ll take them up on their offer, or if the league is willing to change course on its decision.
Here’s more from around the NFL:
- In addition to some of the more obvious candidates for extensions this offseason, CBSSports.com’s Joel Corry suggests Giants safety Landon Collins, Rams wide receiver Brandin Cooks, Bengals defensive end Carlos Dunlap, Vikings defensive end Danielle Hunter, and Ravens linebacker C.J. Mosley are among those in line for new deals. Collins’ case is particularly interesting as the Giants shift to a different scheme under new defensive coordinator James Bettcher. The Giants will ask Collins to play a good deal of man coverage, which isn’t necessarily his strong suit, so the Giants might not want to pay him at the top of the safety market.
- In an interview with SiriusXM, Steelers free agent safety Mike Mitchell indicated that he hasn’t received much interest on the open market. The Steelers said in March that a return was possible, but that seems unlikely after the team added rookie safeties Terrell Edmunds (first round) and Marcus Allen (fith round) as well as free agent Morgan Burnett.
Billy Price Fully Cleared After Chest Injury
The Bengals are set to have their preferred starting center available when they convene for training camp next month. First-round pick Billy Price tweeted Monday he’s been fully cleared for work.
An offseason injury defined Price’s first NFL offseason. The Ohio State standout tore a pectoral muscle while doing bench press in February, but it didn’t damage his stock much. The Bengals selected him with the No. 21 overall pick.
Price was expected to be ready by the time camp began, and a report last week placed the rookie blocker as being a month ahead of schedule. Being cleared on Monday, more than five weeks from the start of Bengals camp, lines up with that updated timeline.
The Bengals will shift to Price after deploying Russell Bodine as their starting center for the past 64 regular-season games. Bodine started every game as a Bengal in his four years in Cincinnati, but he’s now with the Bills battling for their starting job. Barring something unexpected, Price will join longtime Bills left tackle Cordy Glenn as new Bengals offensive line starters.
This Date In Transactions History: Bengals Cut Terrelle Pryor
On this date in 2015, the Bengals released quarterback Terrelle Pryor. After four unremarkable years in the NFL, the move didn’t mean much at the time. However, the release changed the trajectory of the former Ohio State star’s career. 
The late Al Davis brought Pryor into the league after selecting him in the third round of the 2011 supplemental draft. Pryor didn’t play much in his first two seasons and struggled on the whole in 2013, although there were some impressive moments. Pryor was traded to the Seahawks in 2014, but was cut prior to Week 1 and wound up sitting out of football altogether that year. In January of 2015, the Chiefs signed Pryor, but released him in May. The Bengals scooped him up, but cut him from the roster five weeks later on June 18, 2015.
Clearly, Pryor’s athleticism could not carry him at the quarterback position in the NFL, but he was reluctant to give up on his lifelong dream. Prior to signing with the Bengals, Pryor declared, “If I can’t play quarterback, I can’t play football.” But, after his release from the Bengals, agent Drew Rosenhaus informed teams that Pryor was willing to line up as a wide receiver.
Ohio’s other team – the Browns – moved quickly to claim Pryor off of waivers. Pryor mostly sat on the bench in 2015 as Josh McCown‘s backup, but the Browns shifted him to wide receiver prior to the 2016 offseason. The Browns were optimistic about what the 6’4″, 228-pound athlete could do at his new position, but few expected him to finish the season with 77 catches for 1,007 yards and four touchdowns.
Pryor parlayed his huge season into a one-year, $6MM free agent deal with the Redskins, but he was held back by an ankle injury and did little in D.C. This offseason, the Jets decided to take a moderate gamble on Pryor by signing him to a one-year, $4.5MM contract with $2MM guaranteed.
Pryor is still battling an ankle injury and it’s anyone’s guess as to whether he’ll be able to replicate his ’16 production with Gang Green. But, Pryor has earned far more in the NFL than anyone expected he would back in 2015, which is something to be proud of regardless of how things shake out from here.
Billy Price Well Ahead Of Schedule
- Billy Price‘s rehab during his first NFL offseason is going well. The Bengals rookie is approximately a month ahead of schedule in his rehabilitation from a torn pectoral muscle, Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com reports. Price will remain in Cincinnati during the midsummer hiatus. He bench-pressed 315 pounds this week, although he currently needs to be supervised upon doing so at this juncture of the process. The Ohio State standout injured himself in February performing bench reps. Prior to the draft, Price was expected to be ready for training camp. So, that seems fairly easy to assume now given the timeline update.
Tyler Eifert Uncertain For Training Camp
Although Tyler Eifert received medical clearance early in the offseason, the Bengals are holding the recently re-signed tight end out of minicamp this week. And Marvin Lewis isn’t sure if that setup will change once the team reconvenes in late July for training camp.
Lewis said, via Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com, he doesn’t know if Eifert is going to be back by the time training camp begins. He’s recovering from back surgery after back problems defined a second straight season. Eifert was a limited OTAs participant.
The Bengals’ working out at Paul Brown Stadium could be a factor here. Lewis said the field being redone earlier this month has affected how the team is proceeding with Eifert. It can be expected that Eifert, who re-signed with Cincinnati for $5.5MM on a one-year deal, will return to work at training camp. It’s just not known if the sixth-year tight end will do so from the outset.
“There’s no reason to get him jostled,” Lewis said. “Just ease his way into things. No setback. We’re trying to make sure we manage everything they want him to do.”
Health’s obviously been the defining component in Eifert’s NFL career, and he’s at a career crossroads because of it. The 2015 Pro Bowler has missed 51 percent of the regular-season games during his Bengals run. He missed 14 games last season and eight in 2016.