CINCINNATI — ESPN's Aaron Schatz dropped one final offseason move each NFL team should check off the board before training camp, keeping things in-house for the Bengals.
Cincinnati needs to get Shemar Stewart signed and on the field.
"The Bengals' contract impasse with first-round pick Stewart is complicated," Schatz wrote. "The dispute is related to specific contract language regarding the potential voiding of guarantees in case of default by the player. This is language that a lot of players have put into their contracts. The problem is that it is not language that past Cincinnati first-round picks have in their contracts, and Stewart does not want to be the first.
"The Bengals must decide how much they want to hold their ground on this issue versus how important it is to get their first-round pick practicing with the team, especially considering that Stewart was considered a raw talent. If they want Stewart to accept this language, they probably need to make a concession in some other area. Otherwise, they should justuse the same language they used with last year's first-round pick, Amarius Mims, getting Stewart into the building as soon as possible."
Stewart's options to do anything but sign the contract or continue sitting out are limited. The only way he can play meaningful football this fall is with the Bengals, or else he'd have to sit out a full year and re-enter the draft as a player with 4.5 career college sacks.
No fresh update has surfaced on continued contract negotiations since minicamp broke in the middle of June.
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