Bengals Sign Former Bills Guard Quinton Spain to Practice Squad
CINCINNATI — The Bengals signed veteran guard Quinton Spain to their practice squad on Friday.
The 29-year-old was released by Buffalo earlier this month.
The Bengals released rookie defensive end Kendall Futrell to make room on the practice squad.
Spain started all 16 games for the Bills last season. He's appeared in 70 regular season games (66 starts) in his six seasons.
Giving him a week or two to get acclimated on the practice squad makes sense. It gives him time to learn the system. The Bengals will likely promote him to the active roster in the near future.
Other veteran players like Damon 'Snacks' Harrison and Dez Bryant are on practice squads. Harrison has turned down offers to join active rosters.
Don't expect Spain to stay on the practice squad long. There's no reason to promote him to the 53-man roster when they can place him on the practice squad and still activate him for Sunday's game against Tennessee. He won't start, but is expected to be an emergency reserve this week.
Spain signed with the Titans as an undrafted free agent after the 2015 NFL Draft. He made their final roster as a rookie, playing in seven games. The West Virginia alum would give the Bengals another experienced guard to pair with Xavier Su'a-Filo, who is currently on injured reserve with a foot injury.
Alex Redmond and Michael Jordan have both struggled at right and left guard, respectively. The duo has allowed 28 pressures this season according to Pro Football Focus.
Spain, 29, posted a 60.6 overall PFF grade this year. That's far from stellar, but he's a proven commodity that could contribute right away. He would likely play left guard, which would give the Bengals time to develop Jordan, who is still just 22-years-old.
The duo of Spain and Su'a-Filo could fare well together in the second half of the season.
The Bengals also acquired B.J. Finney from Seattle in the Carlos Dunlap trade. The addition of Spain and Finney could help in the trenches over the final eight games of the season.
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