MVN - Most Valuable Network

Bengals Sign Jason Shirley

If there was a Bengal rookie needing to get signed it, it is was DT Jason Shirley.   A 5th round pick out of Fresno State, Shirley was focus of many a Bengals draft report and not in a good way as he is the latest in a long line of Bengal character risks.  Missing a few practices holding out also was not an option for a player who will need to request an excused absence to have his day in court sometime in mid-August (if he is still on the team).   At 6′5 330 lbs Shirley is also a mountain of a man who could be the big run stuffer the team has lacked for years.   For those who point to the draft risk, don’t forget he was a 5th round pick.  Having just completed a three year recap of the 2005 draft for NFLDraft101.com, finding a 5th round pick who sticks is no easy task and far from a certainty.   It is for this reason teams are more willing to take risks in these later rounds.   If Shirley turns into a solid interior player, and keeps his nose clean all will be forgotten.  If he gets in trouble just once, you can guarantee he will get cut as there won’t be a big cap hit.    This said, Shirley will be battling for the last defensive line spot or even a practice squad position as early returns from his mini-camp workouts is he has size and athleticism but also needs a lot of work esp. on technique. 

This entry was posted on Monday, July 14th, 2008 at 3:46 pm and is filed under Jason Shirley, Bengal News, Bengal Bites. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.