Wide receiver Tyler Boyd had 513 receptions for 6,000 yards and 31 touchdowns in eight seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals. But the slot specialist joined the Tennessee Titans in free agency this offseason.
Did the Bengals draft Boyd’s replacement when they added Jermaine Burton from Alabama in the third round of the NFL Draft on April 26?
“Very talented,” Cincinnati offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher told the Bengals’ official website about Burton after the team’s offseason program. “Some of the surest hands, ball skills that I’ve seen. A young player who really attacks the football violently, but then plucks it softly, if that makes any sense. Excellent body control, change of direction. Like all rookies, I think he’s going through the process of figuring out what’s going to be required of him at this level, and then specifically within our offense to be a productive player. Very happy with his approach, his attitude.
“I see him putting the work in, and he’ll only get better at that the longer he’s around a great coach in Troy Walters and great players like Ja’Marr (Chase) and Tee (Higgins) and other veterans who have been in that room, Trenton Irwin — guys who know what it looks like. Happy with what we’ve seen from him this spring. I think he’s got a ton of growth ahead of him. But I think he’s approaching it in such a way that he’s going to get to where we need him to be. And how fast he gets there, a lot of that is going to be on him. But very encouraged.”
Burton averaged 20.5 yards and scored eight touchdowns on his 39 receptions for Alabama last season. He’s scheduled to report with the rest of Cincinnati’s rookies for his first NFL training camp on Saturday.
Burton got plenty of first-team work with the Bengals’ offense during the offseason program. Chase attended only the mandatory minicamp, and Higgins skipped all the workouts after getting franchise-tagged.
“I don’t care what round I could have been,” Burton told Cincinnati play-by-play announcer Dan Hoard. “If I would have known I was going to this team, I would’ve picked that from the jump.”
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