Cincy Jungle
They’re not wrong.
The Cincinnati Bengals are without either of who most would assume would be their starting defensive ends in 2025. Trey Hendrickson, the league’s reigning sack leader, is holding out for a new contract, and the team’s first-round pick, Shemar Stewart, has yet to sign his rookie contract.
The reason Stewart hasn’t signed is reportedly specific language in his contract that wasn’t present in Amarius Mims’, last year’s first-round pick, contrct. The language specifically could void future guarantees if there was some sort of breach of contract, which is something the Bengals haven’t done before.
Stewart made very scathing and public comments on Tuesday about the team that drafted him, and on Wednesday, his agency joined the fray to correct Andrew Brandt’s assessment of the situation.
When Brandt summed up the situation by stating Stewart was the No. 18 pick and he wants the same language that Mims’ contract had, Loyalty Above All Sports and Entertainment Agency made sure everyone is aware the numbers there were backwards.
“Other way around..” they wrote. “Shemar is the higher pick at 17.. they want his contract different even though he is the higher pick.. last year they picked 18.. even more reason.
This has not been a pretty offseason for the Bengals so far as they’ve been dragged through the mud publicly by a legitimate league star and a first-round pick about two separate contract issues.
What do you think? Do you agree with Stewart and his agents or do you think the Bengals have the right to add the language?
Sound off.
