It wasn’t too long ago former Ohio State star Michael Jordan was one of the biggest feel-good stories surrounding the Cincinnati Bengals.
Jordan — a lifelong Bengals fan — was the team’s fourth-round pick in 2019 and he found quick playing time on a rebuilding line.
Things weren’t perfect for Jordan by any means, but rookie growing pains paired with injury didn’t help.
But Bengals line coach Jim Turner is far from done with the sophomore, as he made clear to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com:
“Mike is an enormous human being. Love the size, love the ability. He has tremendous intangibles, tremendous work ethic and look at how much he played. Total of 667 snaps, 14 at right guard, 15 as an extra tackle and the rest at left guard. I said to Mike in the offseason, ‘We’re obviously planning for you. We brought you in here to play.’ He got banged up halfway through but played well down the stretch.”
It’s almost easy to forget about Jordan given how bad Cincinnati’s offensive line was last year. He was a part of it — though a combination of upside and good health could rewrite the narrative surrounding his play quickly.
Jordan projects to be in a fight with Billy Price on the left side as free-agent add Xavier Su’a-Filo assumes the duties at right guard.
Given how the Bengals keep talking about him, it wouldn’t be a shocker to see Jordan emerge as a Day 1 starter next to Jonah Williams.
