The Cincinnati Bengals raised some eyebrows during mandatory minicamp week with the signing of free-agent guard John Jerry.
Not only was the move a surprising one given the mystery injury to Jonah Williams and continued absences of someone like Clint Boling, Jerry has a well-known link to offensive line coach Jim Turner.
And not in a good way.
Jerry was a central part of the Bullygate scandal in Miami years ago under Turner’s watchful eye, at least according to the investigation that named him more than 100 times.
But Jerry isn’t worried about what outsiders might think on the matter.
“I don’t care what people think about me,” Jerry said, according to Jay Morrison of The Atheltic. “The people who really know me know who I am, so I’m not too much worried about the outside perception.”
For better or worse, Zac Taylor has been all-in on Turner, defending the move publicly. They believe he’ll be instrumental in turning around one of the league’s worst units and in turn, Turner believes the same for the versatile Jerry.
In part, the Jerry move also follows suit with what Lou Anarumo has been doing on defense by bringing on former players like B.W. Webb. But like those guys, questions from the past are bound to keep chasing Turner and Jerry.
