Cincinnati Bengals sign Jeremy Hill

Many around the league were a little surprised when the Cincinnati Bengals used the 55th-overall pick in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft on former LSU Tigers’ running back Jeremy Hill.

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Hill is a very talented back and there’s excellent chance he will be a fine NFL player, but in 2012 the Bengals signed BenJarvus Green-Ellis away from the New England Patriots and used the 37th-overall pick in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft to take former North Carolina Tar Heels’ running back Giovani Bernard.

Of course, Bernard is a very talented player and could be used in other ways. In fact, the Bengals will likely use Bernard in the slot in certain packaged during the 2014 season, meaning there will probably enough touches to go around, at least for now.

On Sunday, the Bengals officially agreed to a contract with Hill, finalizing his rookie deal. Hill announced the signing via his twitter account.

Hill rushed for 2,156 yards and 28 touchdowns on 345 carries in his career with the Tigers, including a fantastic 2013 season in which he carried the ball 203 times for 1,403 yards and 16 touchdowns. He also had 18 receptions for 181 yards last season, giving him 26 catches for 254 yards in his career.

Green-Ellis gained 756 yards and scored seven touchdowns on 220 carries for the Bengals last season while Bernard picked up 695 yards and five touchdowns on 170 attempts and caught 56 passes for 514 yards and three touchdowns.