Why is it always the Cincinnati Bengals? The NFL's last true "mom and pop shop" continues to do things on their terms, even if it is painfully frustrating at the expense of everyone else. They do things well as an organization. Cincinnati has drafted well in recent years. The Bengals also do a great job of empowering unheralded players and coaches on a quest to do better together. But the Shemar Stewart situation shows where their approach can backfire.
With contract negotiations involving their star edge rusher Trey Hendrickson being very much a focal point of NFL offseason chatter, we cannot lose sight that their first-round rookie edge rusher Shemar Stewart out of Texas A&M has yet to even practice with the team. ESPN's Ben Baby let it be known that contract negotiation talks have finally resumed between Hendrickson's camp and the Bengals.
While Stewart being unsigned at this stage of the offseason is bordering on it being a terrible look, why do the Bengals always try to shortcut paying their top players? Surely, there are stipulations in Stewart's contract that are not being met that are not even second-thought inclusions in every other first-round rookie's deal. I get the NFL is a big business, but he had 4.5 sacks playing for Texas A&M!
I am not going to say he is going to bust, but there has been one red flag after another in his saga.
Trey Hendrickson negotiations make Shemar Stewart look even worse
In an ideal world, the Bengals would be like every other team in the NFL and have both of their marquee pass rushers, young and old, under new contracts and heading into training camp with one goal in mind: To win a Super Bowl! Then again, this is just the latest example of why the Bengals are the least valuable team in the NFL despite having Joe Burrow at quarterback. They are so very cheap!
Not to say octogenarian owner Mike Brown would actually sell his own kidney to make five bucks, but is it even worth five bucks at this point? The Bengals' antiquated business model may have worked in the 1970s, but that was over 50 years ago. While it is never a good look to see millionaires arguing with billionaires when so many still have so little, it is the nature of the beast when it comes to sports.
The biggest discrepancy I feel when discussing Hendrickson's situation and that of Stewart's is that one has been a highly productive player for a very long time, while the other never has been. Traits can only get you so far in life. If Stewart averages 1.5 sacks for the next four years, he will be off the Bengals with a grand total of six over four seasons. Are the Bengals suffering from draft-day remorse in this?
That being said, I would try to pay Stewart fairly so he has a real shot at getting on the field to earn it.