He cleared waivers Monday and the Bengals signed him to the practice squad Wednesday, despite reports Dawson had a tryout with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Dawson has been known to be late for meetings and inconsistent in his work rate.
“I can’t really say how other teams evaluated him or not, but he’s back here and he’s just got to do it right all the time to be able to stay around,” Bengals defensive coordinator Paul Guenther said. “He needs to be a consistent pro.”
The TCU product appeared in 11 games as a rookie, playing mostly on special teams, where he had seven tackles. He had eight tackles on defense and two on special teams during the preseason.
Captains named: According to the team website, the Bengals voted cornerback Adam Jones, left tackle Andrew Whitworth, quarterback Andy Dalton, nose tackle Domata Peko, linebacker Vincent Rey and defensive end Michael Johnson as their six captains.
Jones and Johnson are first-time captains, while the other four have worn the “C” before.
“It’s good,” Jones said. “It just shows the respect I have of my peers, the work that I’ve put in and just trying to lead by example.”
Injury report: All but two players on the 53-man roster practiced Wednesday. Tight end Tyler Eifert (ankle) worked out on the rehab field, but defensive tackle Pat Sims did not participate and was listed on the injury report with an Achilles problem.
Cornerback Darqueze Dennard was limited as he works back from an ankle injury suffered Aug. 1 on the first day of contact in training camp. He resumed practice Monday. Meanwhile, other previously injured players Cedric Ogbuehi (toe), Jake Fisher (knee/ankle), Adam Jones (calf), Tyler Kroft (knee), Rex Burkhead (shoulder) and T.J. Johnson (concussion) were all full participants.
Hitting the road: When the Bengals travel to play the New York Jets on Sunday, it marks a franchise record seventh consecutive year they will open on the road. Cincinnati is 6-7 in season openers in Marvin Lewis' tenure, including 5-5 on the road.
“It’s never an easy assignment to go on the road, let alone a season opener with all the pageantry and everything that goes on in the stadiums during a home opener,” Lewis said. “I guess we get to do it two weeks in a row (also at Pittsburgh next week).”
Color rush jerseys: Rookie receiver Tyler Boyd and veteran defensive linemen Geno Atkins and Carlos Dunlap will be on hand at the Cincinnati Zoo's white tiger exhibit at 9 a.m. Tuesday to unveil the Bengals' "Color Rush" jerseys for the Sept. 29 game against Miami.
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