The Cincinnati Bengals got next to nothing out of 2025 first-round pick Shemar Stewart, and while the offseason program is often dismissed as insignificant, Stewart proved how critical it can be on his own.
Stewart only had 4.5 sacks in three seasons at Texas A&M despite all-world athleticism. He got injured in Week 2, and looked dreadful for most of the time he was on the field as an NFL rookie.
Quite the contrast to Stewart's ex-teammate and Cincinnati's latest top draft pick, second-rounder Cashius Howell, who could very well beat out Stewart snap count-wise in 2026.
Cashius Howell fired up to be in action for the Bengals as soon as possible
Although he hadn't agreed to terms on his rookie contract, Howell didn't let that stop him from participating in rookie minicamp. Hearing what his mindset was about it is such a great shift from the nonsense between Stewart and the Bengals last year (via CLNSCincy.com's Mike Petraglia):
"I love football at the end of the day. Regardless of negotiations still being intact...I wanted to do everything that I could in my power to put myself in the best position to go out there and get anything that I can with the football, with the talking, communication, just every aspect. Regardless of the contract not being negotiated fully, doesn't really matter to me."
“Regardless of the contract not being negotiated fully, doesn’t really matter to me.” Cashius Howell says he just loves football and wanted to be at Bengals rookie camp Friday. pic.twitter.com/WGKyH3fsXD
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) May 8, 2026
Bear in mind that in June 2025, around the time of the Bengals' mandatory minicamp, Stewart was saying things like the team cared more about winning arguments than games.
Cincinnati was quibbling with Stewart over offset contract language that would allow future guaranteed money to be voided for certain detrimental conduct.
Blame could be assigned on both sides. I'd err on the side of the organization for not only the Stewart spat, but also not treating Trey Hendrickson right. On the other hand, Stewart could've just done what Howell did, participate in the offseason program from the jump, and get some key developmental work in.
Howell was the SEC Defensive Player of the Year for the Aggies this past season, racking up 11.5 sacks to dwarf Stewart's three-year college total. Despite that decorated backstory, Howell wasn't content to just sit around and wait for his contract to be locked in. He was ready to roll at rookie minicamp, eager to get some work in.
Perhaps now that Howell is in Cincinnati, his mindset can rub off on Stewart, who really needs to show something to avoid being tagged with the ominous bust label.
Credit to the front office, too, for getting their undrafted free agents and five of seven draft picks already signed. Let's hope negotiations don't drag on too long for Howell and Tacario Davis. It's time to stop messing around with that, alienating players from the start of their career, and just put the Bengals in the best position to flourish in 2026.
Add us as a preferred source on Google