Reese Dismukes, Bryn Renner, Devin Gardner among 9 to workout for Bengals during bye week

In addition to safety Ahmad Dixon, the Bengals hosted several other prospects for workouts during the team's bye week.

According to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle, the Bengals worked out center Reese Dismukes, receiver/quarterback Devin Gardner, receiver Deontay Greenberry, safety Ryan Murphy, linebacker Quayshawn Nealy, linebacker Ronald Powell, linebacker Alex Singleton, and quarterback Bryn Renner.

The most notable player on that list is Gardner for several reasons. The former Michigan Wolverines quarterback played both receiver and QB for the Steelers before being cut in August. He's an interesting prospect who started 27 games at quarterback and four at wide receiver during his college career. He ranks sixth on UM's career passing touchdowns list (44), fourth in career passing yards (6,336) and fourth in career total offense (7,252), per Michigan's website.

It's worth pointing out that Gardner was claimed on waivers by the Steelers after the Patriots originally signed him as an undrafted free agent, only to waive him weeks later. Gardner spent the entire summer and most of training camp with the Steelers before being waived during the first wave of roster cuts from 90 to 75 players.

Of course, the Bengals play the Steelers next, but given the fact Gardner wasn't with Pittsburgh past training camp, it's doubtful he has much to offer that would help gameplan for the matchup. He's also not someone capable of playing QB in the NFL in anything other than an emergency role, so his best chance at ever cracking even a practice squad will be as a receiver.

Dismukes is another former Steeler who worked out for the Bengals this week. A standout center with the Auburn Tigers, Dismukes was the 2014 Rimington Trophy winner in addition to being a first-team All-SEC selection and was considered one of the top centers in the 2015 NFL Draft. However, Dismukes never heard his name called before signing with the Steelers as an undrafted free agent. He was waived during final roster cuts before initially making Pittsburgh's practice squad, only to be cut from it days later.

Renner is another interesting prospect who spent this year's training camp with the Ravens as their third-string quarterback before being waived during final roster cuts. A former standout QB with the North Carolina Tar Heels, Renner finished his college career with 8,221 passing yards and 64 passing scores vs 25 interceptions. He missed the second half of his senior season due to a shoulder injury, which hurt his draft stock in 2014.

Renner spent part of 2014 with the Denver Broncos before signing with Baltimore this offseason. He went on to be their third-string QB in the preseason and completed 43 of 65 passes (66.2 percent) for 409 yards and four touchdowns vs two interceptions in four preseason games before being signed to the practice squad, only to be cut from it two weeks later.

Murphy was a seventh-round pick by the Seahawks this year before he was waived during final roster cuts. The former Oregon State free safety finished with 65 tackles as a senior after notching 74 stops the prior year, while he also grabbed three interceptions.

Greenberry, a former University of Houston receiver, played in 13 games and caught 72 receptions for 841 yards and six touchdowns in 2014 as a Cougar before going undrafted.

Nealy was a former Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets inside linebacker whom the Bengals showed interest in prior to the 2015 draft.

Powell is the only player here with actual NFL experience after playing in 14 games with the Saints in 2014 as a special-teams linebacker. The former Florida Gators standout didn't get drafted in 2014, but snagged a roster spot with the Saints for a year before being waived during final roster cuts this year.

Singleton signed with the Seahawks this past May as an undrafted linebacker out of Montana State. He was waived during final roster cuts and spent some time on the Patriots' practice squad before being cut from it two weeks later.