Ben BabyJun 12, 2025, 09:48 AM ET
- Ben Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Prior to ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News where he covered college sports. He provides daily coverage of the Bengals for ESPN.com, while making appearances on SportsCenter, ESPN's NFL shows and ESPN Radio programs. A native of Grapevine, Texas, he graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor's degree in journalism. He is an adjunct journalism professor at Southern Methodist University and a member of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA).
CINCINNATI -- Bengals rookie defensive end Shemar Stewart left Cincinnati's mandatory minicamp Thursday amid a contract dispute.
Stewart, the Bengal's first-round draft selection, has not participated in any of the team's offseason workouts because of a contract dispute. According to a source, the dispute is centered on interpretation of language in the contract that could affect guaranteed money.
"He wasn't here today, so we just focused on the guys that were here," coach Zac Taylor said after the Bengals completed their three-day minicamp.
Taylor had mixed comments regarding the former Texas A&M star.
The seventh-year coach said he has had "positive conversations" with Stewart amid the dispute, adding that Stewart has attended meetings, been positive in that aspect of his approach, and done a good job of learning ahead of the upcoming season.
"For all the rookies, you'd like them to be on the field," Taylor said. "But certainly there's things that happen over the course of an NFL career, and this is one of them right now."
Taylor indicated, however, that he wasn't necessarily pleased with Stewart's comments earlier this week.
Stewart, when asked Tuesday by ESPN about how long he thought the contract dispute might last, indicated that he isn't seeking anything different or unique from previous Bengals draft picks.
"In my case, I'm 100 percent right," Stewart said. "I'm not asking for anything [the team] hasn't been done before. But in [the team's] case, y'all just want to win an argument instead of winning more games, in my opinion."
Taylor, when asked Thursday about Stewart's criticism of the front office, said the two had "good communication" after those comments were made.
"Number one, we want to protect our team in our locker room," Taylor said. "I understand when there's frustration there. That's how he chose to do it and that's his prerogative. And we look forward to getting him back in the fold."
Stewart isn't the only Bengals pass rusher trying to iron out a contract situation.
Trey Hendrickson, a four-time Pro Bowler and an All-Pro selection last season, skipped the entire mandatory minicamp as he seeks a long-term contract extension. He has said he has no intention of playing out the final year of his current deal.
Bengals center Ted Karras understands the seriousness of both situations and why each player is looking to protect their business interests. And in speaking to reporters Thursday, Karras said that feeling extends to the rest of the team.
"The main thing I want to say is I don't think, to either of our defensive ends, that there's not any harboring resentment in this locker room to them," Karras said. "I really hope that both camps can figure this out because we have a really good team. We've had a super productive spring, and you just don't want this to carry over into the summer."
