There's been plenty of talk recently that the Bengals just aren't using their talented and young tight end as much as they should. After a pedestrian two-reception performance against the Broncos that recorded only eight yards receiving, Bengals tight end Jermaine Gresham was mostly quiet for another Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers until posting two receptions for 39 yards late in the game. Additionally Gresham is the second-leading receiver on the team, with 12 receptions behind A.J. Green's 15 and Cincinnati's second-year tight end is one of only three players with a receiving touchdown.
That being said, even though people would like to see more of Gresham, the Bengals tight end is taking as much of the blame for both of Cincinnati's scoring drives that resulted in field goals and not touchdowns. Admitting that he missed a few blocks in the red zone, Gresham said:
"Things that were done early on my part hurt the team. We shouldn't have been in that situation, and I just have to tighten up and improve things." When pressed, Gresham continued. "Just key blocks in the run game. Right now, I feel like I am just hurting the team. I think I just need to put more into the week and just be more consistent."