Bengals LS Clark Harris jokes that he deserves a raise

Cincinnati Bengals' Clark Harris made his presence felt in the season-opening loss -- or rather, he made his absence felt, and the team may be taking him for granted.

The end of the Bengals-Steelers Week 1 game was...something. A blocked extra point attempt, multiple missed potential game-winning field goals in OT, and one heartbreaking loss to a hated AFC North rival.

The turning point came when Harris, the team's long snapper, got knocked up on a play and was forced to leave late in the game. Tight end Mitchell Wilcox filled in for him, but the shake-up in the special teams unit arguably caused issues with the kick operation thus leading to Cincy's blocked extra point attempt and missed field goal.

Those snapping miscues also reportedly caused the Bengals to make a very confusing move: with about a minute to go in overtime, they snapped the ball on a punt with 13 seconds left on the play clock to "make sure the operation went smoothly."

After the punt, the Steelers drove down the field for the game-winning field goal.

Bengals long snapper Clark Harris will be sorely missed in 2022

Had Harris been healthy, the Bengals may not have encountered so many issues with their field goal unit, and Evan McPherson may have sealed a victory with a completed extra point attempt.

Harris proved why he was so integral to the Bengals' special teams squad on Sunday, and he recently joked that he deserves a pay raise.

Given how long Harris has been with the Bengals, he certainly deserves one.

Harris has snapped in all but three of the Bengals' last 205 games dating back to 2009, and that kind of consistency can't be easily replaced.

It was revealed that Harris suffered a season-ending tear of his bicep in the game, which likely means the Bengals will promote practice squad long snapper Cal Adomitis to starting duties.

Cincinnati may unfortunately run into more snags in their special teams operations with a young and unproven player taking over snapping duties, and everyone wants to see Harris back on the field sooner rather than later.

Harris plays one of the most overlooked positions in football, yet he remains a crucial cog on this Bengals team -- after Week 1, he has a substantial case for at least a small bump in his salary.