The Cincinnati Bengals did plow their way through new deals for Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, but now they cannot seem to avoid contract controversies on the other side of the ball.
Edge rusher Trey Hendrickson, the best player on the Bengals' defense, is in a sour mood as there is a stalemate therte, with him essentially accusing the club of lying to him about its plans to extend him this offseason.
And surely - though the team insists otherwise - Hendrickson’s uncertain future played a role in Cincinnati drafting edge rusher Shemar Stewart in Round 1.
So now it's time to sign the rookie.
But Stewart is following in Hendrickson’s footsteps. ... in a bad way.
And so the rookie is essentially "holding in.''
“I just decided not to sign those [waiver] papers,” Stewart said a few days ago, via video from Caleb Noe. “I’m doing everything else. It’s just like on-the-field stuff I’m not doing.”
And an update ...
"I'm not asking for anything crazy," Stewart said on Tuesday. "I'm not even asking for nothing. I just want things to be consistent. I just want consistent language as in the past contracts.
"I just won't practice until I get that."
Stewart is adamant that he is excited to get on the field.
“I would love to be a part of the team. I hate being on the sideline looking at everybody else do work,” Stewart said.
Cincinnati head coach Zac Taylor didn’t seem overly concerned when asked about Stewart and second-round linebacker Demetrius Knight II having not put pen to paper. Maybe the fan base shouldn’t be, either, as eventually, Stewart should make everyone forget about this conflict with his play.
But for now? Bengals labor peace would be nice.