The Cincinnati Bengals are gathering for training camp this week with notable absences for the second consecutive season. Trey Hendrickson is still away from the team as he battles with the front office over a contract extension. More notable is the absence of Shemar Stewart, the 17th pick in the 2025 NFL draft who still hasn't signed his rookie contract.
On Monday, Bengals director of player personnel Duke Tobin met with the media to discuss those issues and gave his thoughts on Stewart's holdout. He said the young defensive end needs to be at camp, and used one word to describe what he thought was the team's treatment of Stewart amid a tumultuous situation.
"I don’t blame Shemar. He’s listening to the advice he’s paying for. I don’t understand the advice," Tobin said, via WLWT's Jaron May. "We're treating him fairly."
Clearly Stewart does not feel the same way. The Texas A&M product is the only first-round pick to remain unsigned at this stage in the offseason. Rookies reported to training camp over the weekend, and the rest of the team will report on Tuesday. So far Stewart is nowhere to be seen, although he has been a presence at his alma mater in College Station.
A resolution to the situation doesn't seem to be within reach.
More NFL on Sports Illustrated
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Bengals Exec Used One Word to Describe Team's Treatment of Shemar Stewart Amid Holdout.
