Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle Bobby Hart hears the skeptics in the wake of his signing a new deal with the team.
Those Bengals received some heavy criticism for inking Hart to a three-year deal worth up to $21 million. For Hart, the only thing he can do is focus on the task at hand.
“Everything ties in together. At the end of the day it’s to get my job done,” Hart said, according to Bengals.com. “It really doesn’t matter. The thing that matters is moving forward. Keeping Andy (Dalton) clean. Making sure Joe (Mixon) can run and show his ability. We talked about (the cadence), but no one wants to hear why you jumped offsides. Don’t jump offsides.”
A solid response from Hart, no doubt. But the criticism from outside the walls was warranted — Hart signed a one-year deal last year and struggled mightily before the Bengals decided to give him a raise on three more years before free agency opened.
All Hart can do now is prove he’ll grow into the role. It helps he has swing-tackle versatility, so his coming back doesn’t stop the team front drafting a tackle at some point or perhaps even going after other free agents, as unlikely as that seems at this point.
As with the Bengals as a whole, the only thing that will win over fans is Hart winning on the field.
