Throughout their history, the Cincinnati Bengals have been known for some of the most disastrous draft misses of all time. From 1999 quarterback Akili Smith to offensive tackle Cedric Ogbuehi in 2015, this is an organization that tends to miss when it comes to picking collegiate prospects. After Zac Taylor was hired as a head coach in 2019, the organization has grown far more astute at scouting young talent but they still don’t have a perfect record.
Cincinnati Bengals Cut Former Clemson Tiger
After an absolute dud of a preseason, Duke Tobin and the Bengals front office decided to officially cut 2021 second-round pick Jackson Carman from the active roster. Once selected with the 46th overall pick in the NFL draft, Carman managed to land on the field for a solid portion of his rookie season but after that, he only played sixteen offensive snaps for the team over the past two seasons. For a second-round selection, that is certainly a major disappointment.
Amongst the Worst Training Camps in Recent History
Even though he certainly didn’t do himself any favors, Carman wasn’t dealt a particularly easy hand after the team brought in starting tackle Trent Brown and then drafted Amarius Mims with the 18th overall pick this offseason. That meant that in order to prove himself valuable, he would have needed to prove himself at least equal to a first-round pick.
Fast forward to training camp: Carman has suffered one of the worst training camps possible after he quickly dropped to the bottom of the depth chart. In just 64 offensive snaps this preseason, Carman drew four penalties and earned a mediocre Pro Football Focus overall score of 55.4, even though he played with the third string and played against low-level competition. Even with the bad camp, the penalties were a huge issue for Carman after he was immediately pulled from each preseason game after embarrassing false start penalties.
An argument can easily be made that even though Carman apparently struggled with his work ethic throughout his short NFL career so far, the addition of two starting quality tackles this offseason could have been a devastating blow to his playing chances. After all, the odds of him earning a starting job this season or even a second-string role were virtually nonexistent. Carman will likely have an opportunity to sign with another team as a backup and it’s entirely possible that the Clemson product will be able to jump-start what could still be a promising career.
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