The Cincinnati Bengals, in classic penny-pinching fashion, managed to put first-round rookie pass rusher Shemar Stewart under duress by refusing to agree to a contract for a longer time than most due to confrontations over guaranteed money.
Stewart came into the league as an unfinished product, making the lack of reps a big concern. Starting off his career with a protracted, petty fight over something that should have been ironed out a long time ago is the exact type of stuff that Bengals fans have continuously been beaten down with in the last few years.
Cincinnati has since locked up Stewart, and the results seem to be coming fairly quickly. According to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the Bengals are chomping at the bit to turn Stewart loose once they believe he has full command of the team's defensive structure.
"Physical player...he's got great burst, great twitch," Zac Taylor said. "So excited to see him evolve." Taylor did say that he is trying not to put too much on his plate early in his career, though that is becoming harder as he keeps flexing his muscles.
Bengals rookie Shemar Stewart earning rave reviews at training camp
Stewart recorded just 4.5 sacks in his three-season college career, putting up 1.5 sacks in each of his three Aggie campaigns. Of those 4.5 sacks, 1.5 of them came against Bowling Green and FCS Sam Houston. Cincinnati is taking a massive bet on its defensive coaching staff being able to fix Stewart's big issues.
There may be no player in this NFL Draft class that needs as many practice reps as humanly possible more than Stewart, as his game is as raw as humanly possible. Even after being put behind schedule thanks to his whole contract squabble, the Bengals are luckily seeing that he has the ability to get things turned around.
If Stewart lives up to his potential as a physical freak for his size, and the Bengals are able to get Trey Hendrickson back on the field, the defensive line should be able to withstand the retirement of Sam Hubbard. Stewart's explosion and muscle are going to make him a force to be reckoned with in due time.
While Stewart has always looked less impressive as he puts more equipment on, the fact he is starting to overpower an improved Bengals offensive line without having full mastery of the defensive playbook should give fans some serious hope for the future.