Rookie Guard Clint Boling In First Position On Team's Depth Chart

With Bobbie Williams serving a four-game suspension after a reported violation of the league's performance enhancement policy, it left a gap open. Who would replace him? The Bengals knew of the suspension as far back as the first preseason game, which allowed guard Clint Boling to rotate in with the first team unit at various points during the preseason.

Veteran guard Max Jean-Gilles, a candidate to replace Williams, was an awful option, released on Saturday when the team reduced their active roster to the the maximum 53 players. Otis Hudson, called the most improved offensive lineman behind Andre Smith at one point, is still recovering from a knee injury and the team's newest acquisition, Mike McGlynn, only arrived on Monday.

That all being said, the Bengals.com depth chart has Clint Boling in first position at right guard; the first hint that the Bengals might be calling on the rookie to start. Boling says he's ready.

“I feel comfortable with the assignments and the playbook. I just need to have a great week of practice, fix the little things and get ready for Sunday,” Boling said. “Going into camp my ultimate goal was to play and start and now I’m being presented with the opportunity to go out there and compete.”