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The Cincinnati Bengals think they’re in a really good spot with their current offensive line.
Not only is former first-round pick Jonah Williams rejoining the fray this year, but offensive line coach Jim Turner is also particularly high on sixth-round pick Hakeem Adeniji.
Turner appeared on the “Bengals Booth Podcast” with Dan Hoard and Dave Lapham and revealed the following:
“I’ll be honest with you, when I went to the combine…he immediately stands out. I watched him on tape before I got there and I’ll be honest with you, I graded him as a second-round pick. I graded him as a second or third-round pick… He’s a Jonah Williams-type person when it comes to how much he loves football and how much he understands commitment…He got drafted way behind what he should’ve been drafted. I could not believe nobody else picked him up.”
Turner noted Adeniji can play tackle or guard, though he’ll probably lean toward tackle.
It isn’t unordinary to hear coaches talk up their draft picks over the summer before the action really begins, of course. But Adeniji did seem like a universally-liked pick at the time.
The versatility Turner mentions is certainly a plus, especially if free-agent add Xaiver Su’a-Filo doesn’t work out at guard or Bobby Hart doesn’t progress on the right edge.
But this confidence in a late-round pick goes a long way toward explaining why the team hasn’t made any further additions before training camp.
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