Bengals pivot from draft, eye undrafted free agents
It's been a busy few days for Zac Taylor and the Bengals. They selected a franchise quarterback in Joe Burrow, followed it up by drafting Clemson wide receiver Tee Higgins, before adding three linebackers and two lineman in the NFL Draft.
"We did feel like we wanted to get some linebackers that we could add to (the mix). That’s why we did so much work on them," Taylor said. "We identified areas that we wanted to hit and we felt like the right players were there, so we didn’t overdraft a position that we went into the draft targeting. Again, we feel very good about how it all ended up.”
The Bengals will continue to add to their team on Saturday night and Sunday. All 32 NFL teams will sign undrafted free agents. Cincinnati had 17 available roster spots following the draft.
This tracker will be updated with the latest signings. Here's the latest:
The Bengals' reportedly agreed to terms with multiple undrafted free agents on Sunday, including Georgia defensive lineman Tyler Clark.
Clark had 119 tackles and 6.5 sacks in four seasons with the Bulldogs. He's 6-4. 300 pounds and was a four-year starter. He earned second-team All-SEC honors as a senior, finishing with 26 tackles (eight for loss) and 2.5 sacks in 13 games.
Cincinnati also added Kansas State defensive tackle Trey Dishon. He had 93 career tackles (15.5 for loss) and eight sacks for the Wildcats.
The Bengals also signed USF tight end Mitchell Wilcox according to Aaron Wilson. Wilcox was a first-team All-American Athletic Conference selection in 2018. He finished 43 receptions and 540 receiving yards, which were both school records. He had 28 receptions for 350 yards last season. The 6-3, 247 pound tight end is a willing blocker, which is probably his key to sticking at the next level. Wilcox is a nice signing that multiple NFL teams were likely interested in. He's a realistic candidate for the practice squad.
The Bengals are signing Oregon State offensive tackle Clay Cordasco. He made the announcement on early Sunday morning. Cordasco was a junior college transfer that appeared in 21 games in two seasons for the Beavers. The 6-5, 314-pound offensive lineman made 12 starts last season.
Cordasco is versatile, much like Bengals sixth round selection Hakeem Adeniji. He played both guard and tackle in college and took practice snaps at center.
The Bengals are signing Arkansas running back Devway Whaley according to Danny West of 247 Sports.
Whaley ran for 1,807 yards, scored 17 touchdowns and had 423 receiving yards in four seasons at Arkansas.
Whaley was an Under Armour All-American coming out of high school. He ran for 602 yards as a freshman, but dealt with injuries and never exceeded that total.
The Bengals are signing East Carolina outside linebacker Kendall Futrell according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero.
Futrell finished with 63 tackles (16 for loss), 11 sacks and forced three fumbles in 12 games last season.
The Bengals are also signing Dartmouth cornerback Isiah Swann according to Pelissero.
Swann is Dartmouth's all-time leader in interceptions with 17. He returned four of them for touchdowns.
He ran a 4.40 40-yard dash during his virtual pro day and had a 39" vertical jump. The Bengals didn't draft a cornerback, but Swann has the athleticism, size and production they're looking for. He's listed at 6-0, 195 pounds.
The Bengals signed guard Josh Knipfel from Iowa State according to the school.
Knipfel made 39 straight starts for the Cyclones at right guard. He was an Honorable Mention All-Big 12 selection in each of the past two seasons.
Iowa State also announced that linebacker Marcel Spears Jr. has agreed to terms with the Bengals.
He was AP Second-Team All Big-12 as a senior. Spears made 39 consecutive starts and led the team with 92 tackles last season. He finished with four interceptions, two 'pick-sixes' and two forced fumbles in 2019.
Wake Forest wide receiver Scotty Washington signed with the Bengals according to the school.
Reynolds averaged 17.3 yards per catch last season. He's 6-5, 225 pounds and scored 13 career touchdowns.
