Cincinnati Bengals

Bengals Roster Cuts: Bengals Waive P.J. Dawson

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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On Sunday, the Bengals waived linebacker P.J. Dawson. The once promising rookie is now searching for another team. Are more shocking moves in store?

In the 2015 draft, the Bengals selected Dawson with the last pick in the third round. I remember at the time, I was yelling at the tv screen at every pick for the Bengals to trade up or do something in order to draft Dawson. Yet, somehow, the Bengals still got their guy with the last pick of day 2.

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Dawson was the steal of the draft. The best linebacker hands down, right? We even compared him to Vontaze Burfict due to his athletic ability and instinctive play. Now, not even a full two years later he could be possibly out of Cincinnati.

Beat writer for The Cincinnati Enquirer, Paul Dehner Jr., speculated via twitter that the Bengals must have been really frustrated with Dawson in order to release him. He also tweeted that “So much of what Cincinnati coaches complained about with PJ Dawson was attitude and needing to learn how to be a pro.”

Of course, the play of Dawson didn’t help his case much either. He played well as a rookie and made Who Dey Nation excited about his future and the direction of the Bengals linebacker corps during his few shots to shine. This preseason, Dawson took a step backward and was not very consistent at all.

Though P.J. was sliced from the 53-man roster, he could still end up back in Cincinnati. The Bengals signed nine players to the practice squad which leaves one spot open for Dawson. If he’s able to make it through the waiver wire unclaimed, he should be back in Cincinnati. However, that’s probably easier said than done. The move was surprising. But, let’s see what happens next.

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