Lawrence Eyes Ninety-Seven, Stewart's Future Unclear

0:00On April 21st, the Bengals just put off a huge trade, snagging three-time pro-bowl defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence from the Giants. He's worn number 97 for all seven seasons of his career so far, and now he's eyeing that same digit in Cincinnati Stripes. Shamar Stewart, a second-year player on the Bengals line, currently rocks the 97. Stewart switched from number 4 at Texas A&M to fit the team's defensive lineman numbering rules, which stick mostly to the 90s. Lawrence addressed it head-on at his intro presser Monday, saying he's got questions about the number and plans to chat with Stewart directly to sort it out. The only open 90s numbers left are 96 and 91, and we all remember Geno Atkins owning 91 back in the day. Bengals don't usually bend those position rules, but they just broke precedent trading for Lawrence, so why not make an exception here? Back Lawrence to slide right into 97, channeling that big-man energy in the middle and sparking some nostalgic vibes for Bengals fans who missed the old guard.

1:04From around the league, powered by AI, this is NFL News Today. I'm Corey with The Story.