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Cincinnati Bengals like the potential of tight end C.J. Uzomah


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Cincinnati Bengals like the potential of tight end C.J. Uzomah
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Tight end C.J. Uzomah catches a pass during a Cincinnati Bengals’ practice on May 15, 2015, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo)

 

Tight end C.J. Uzomah caught 29 passes in his entire collegiate career at Auburn. The Cincinnati Bengals already had spent a third-round pick on a tight end before they got around to taking Uzomah in the fifth round with their seventh selection in the 2015 NFL Draft.

But the Bengals think they have something to work with in Uzomah as they overhaul their tight end position.

'He's a young man that's going to be on the rise," Cincinnati tight ends coach Jonathan Hayes said during a press conference recorded for the team's official web site. "He's got size, range, and you need that in the AFC North. The people that we're going to be blocking, you have to have considerably long arms and be able to stay on your feet and be able to get into people and finish them. And we're trying to get more and more guys that are willing to do that. He's a very smart guy -- good football IQ. ...

"He played in a spread offense, so he never really had a tight ends coach. He would go with the receivers coach when they were working on the passing game, and he would go with the O-line coach or the running back coach when they were working on the run game. So he never got individual coaching."

Two-time Pro Bowler Jermaine Gresham finished second on Cincinnati with 62 receptions last season. But Gresham wasn't re-signed. The Bengals are banking on Tyler Eifert becoming their No. 1 target at tight end in 2015. Cincinnati selected Eifert out of Notre Dame with its first-round choice in the 2013 NFL Draft. After catching 39 passes as a rookie, Eifert dislocated his elbow in the first game of the 2014 season and missed the rest of the year.

The Bengals chose Rutgers' Tyler Kroft in the third round of the 2015 NFL Draft, took Uzomah in the fifth round and signed two 6-foot-8 college free agents – Matt Lengel of Eastern Kentucky and John Peters of Mount St. Joseph – as they beefed up their tight end depth.

"I like what I see there," Cincinnati offensive coordinator Hue Jackson said during rookie minicamp. "I think we've got something to work with there. They're big guys that can run. I like their athleticism, and you have to like the fact they're big."

Uzomah is listed as 6-5 and 264 pounds on the Bengals' roster. But Hayes said Uzomah offered more than a big body, and with seven touchdown catches among his 29 collegiate receptions, the rookie could be a candidate for H-back duty as Cincinnati turns its tall tight ends into red-zone targets.

"I think his strength is his versatility," Hayes said. "He can run. He can get down field. He can stretch the seam. And those are the things that you're looking for at this position now. ...  Obviously, because Auburn ran more of the spread offense, he's going to be a guy who's going to take a little more time to grow, but I think he'll be a quick study."

Hayes said Uzomah was under-utilized in Auburn's offense and could turn out to be under-drafted as a fifth-rounder.

"You know when you're around people and you see someone and you meet them and they've got that look in their eye and you can tell he's a focused young man," Hayes said. "He wants to be good. He just wants someone to show him how to be good. The Auburn coaching staff holds him in very, very high esteem. Their one downfall, they said, was they didn't do a good enough job in featuring him in their offense, and they said it repeatedly at the workout. ...

"He's a very tough kid. He played against Alabama with a slightly separated shoulder and he played the entire game. You can see it on tape that he is a tough kid. The thing you realize, though, is he's raw and he has to be brought along, and that's what's exciting with him. He's going to push the guys in my room, and that's going to help us get better."

 

 

http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2015/05/cincinnati_bengals_like_the_po.html

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i can't imagine playing the game of football with a slightly separated right shoulder. anyone who has been there, as i have, would understand the absolute toughness and commitment that would take of a player. he sure as hell earns my respect, because i understand what he must have been going through pain wise.

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