While the Bengals will look to improve at defensive end in the draft, the club could see a surge in athleticism at defensive tackle with Andrew Billings and Marcus Hardison returning from injury. Hardison came on our show, “Sorry If I Spit When I Speak” last offseason, and it was Billings’ turn this offseason to join our crew to discuss his career with the Bengals.
After being projected to be a first round pick, Billings, a standout player at Baylor who was named All-Big 12 in his sophomore year, unexpectedly fell to the Bengals in the fourth round (122nd pick overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft. Interestingly enough, one of the teams that showed great interest in Billings during the pre-draft process was the Pittsburgh Steelers. It’ll be interesting to see how Billings does in facing off against a Steelers team that courted him before the draft, took him out to dinner, and then watched him fall to the fourth round without selecting him before the Bengals scooped him up.
In the following video, Billings tells us about his recovery from a torn meniscus suffered last August; what elements he’s added to his game; whether Geno Atkins and Carlos Dunlap will fill the leadership void left by Domata Peko’s departure; what he likes to eat and much more.