Bengals are putting their culture to the test by drafting Jermaine Burton and all that comes with him

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By John Sheeran | Last updated 4/27/24

Former Alabama wide receiver Jermaine Burton was not on draft boards all across the NFL, and assuming the same for the Cincinnati Bengals was entirely reasonable.

Since the beginning of the Zac Taylor era, Cincinnati has made an emphasis on only bringing in players with squeaky clean character resumes. Players with red on their ledger were cast to the side so a locker room full of football addicts could establish a rock solid culture.

The strength of that culture will be put to the test with Burton set to get a locker of his own.

Burton's character concerns seem to go beyond switching high schools multiple times long before he ended up transferring from Georgia to Alabama. Words from NFL scouts according to The Athletic's Dane Brugler note of "up and down moments" with both coaching staffs he's played under. There was an incident of him swinging on a fan as the field was being stormed following Bama's loss to Tennessee in 2022.

Even his former head coach, Nick Saban, kept it blunt about Burton's red flags.

"The number one thing that he needs to do, I think emotional maturity is the best way to say it," Saban said following the pick. "Do the right things all the time... You gotta do the right things in your life all the time so that you can do the best things that you can do on the field and be the best you can be."

Cincinnati wouldn't take what appears to be a notable risk with one of their premium draft picks if they weren't sure his problems won't carry over to their team. Luckily, they had some extra help in the vetting process.

Why the Bengals are taking a chance on Jermaine Burton

Cincinnati exhausted its opportunities to vet and meet with Burton throughout the pre-draft process. No stone was left unturned as they met with him at the NFL Scouting Combine, and hosted him for a top 30 visit.

They knew what needed to be addressed.

"It was something that we talked about with him," head coach Zac Taylor said of Burton's incident. "Just just to hear what he had to say about it. And again, we did our research on all these guys that we talked to and made sure we're aware of every incident they've been part of. There's certainly maturity things that come with some of these guys coming out of these colleges, and that's one of the things he'll continue to grow with."

The question had to be asked before Taylor got to discuss the football aspect of Burton, but he didn't have to say anything about him as a player. Him banging the table after the pick was sent said it all.

Zac looks a little excited. Pretty sure he just put a crack in that desk.

: NFL Draft on ESPN/ABC/NFLN pic.twitter.com/JGqrcwCZSE
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) April 27, 2024

Burton on the field is one of the most dangerous receivers in this class. He led the SEC in yards per reception (20.5) and led all Power 5 starters in Average Depth of Target (20.2) in 2023.

You want explosive plays? Burton is like dynamite. His explosion score of 98.28 measured by Gridiron Grading puts him atop the class and in rare company with CeeDee Lamb, A.J. Brown, and his new teammate Ja'Marr Chase.

Separation ability is also in Burton's favor. Yahoo Sports' Matt Harmon charted Burton with a 75% success rate against man coverage, and 77.3% against press coverage. Both a top-3 marks in this class.

The tape and numbers back up Burton as a potential steal in the third round. It's only fitting the pick was announced by a former Bengals receiver.

Burton's special connection with a former Bengals great

Burton's pre-draft and college training was under the direction of T.J. Houshmanzadeh, one of the staples of Bengals football in the 2000s. Houshmanzadeh played eight years in Cincinnati alongside Chad Johnson, developing into one of the better slot receivers in the game.

"It's honestly amazing having T.J. train me throughout these last few years even going into college. Working with him is honestly great," Burton said. "Just to know his history and his background with the game of football and his knowledge and see the way he thinks. The way he puts it into the drills and the way he talks to you and his terminology really helps me."

The craft of which Housh developed during his playing days would be invaluable to a young player like Burton, but learning how to be more than just a football player might be an even more significant.

"We also developed a relationship to the point where we talk about other things like maturity and growth."

Burton shared how he put maturity and growth to action following the field-storming incident.

"It was something I had to move past," Burton said. "It was a very emotional, passionate game. A lot was on the line throughout the season, and I moved on from that and learned from situations like that. We played LSU two weeks later and the same thing happened, and I was one of the first guys back in the locker room, so I clearly separated myself and understood what was at stake and didn't want to take the opportunity for granted."

The opportunity is massive. Cincinnati has three explosive receivers ready to elevate the offense to new heights in 2024 so long as Burton keeps moving forward. The Bengals feel great about his trajectory, and having a former player as a possible trusted source of info likely didn't hurt the process.

One rookie isn't going to disrupt the culture the Bengals have built so meticulously throughout the years, but Burton's arrival will become a great litmus test to how strong it's become.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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