It hasn’t taken long for Cincinnati Bengals first round pick Dax Hill to leave a big impression on those around him.
Hill, famous notably for his elite athleticism and versatility, has been able to get some noteworthy work in at multiple spots with the starters while Jessie Bates remains away from the team momentarily.
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor says those moments have been impressive, but that the way he seeks out leaders for help is just as impressive, too.
“I’ve been really impressed with him. I think the part that’s maybe the most impressive is I always see him having these sidebar conversations with some of those veterans whether it be Vonn or Mike or Chido or some of those guys,” Taylor said, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com.
Of course, Taylor also says that a big part of this is that the veteran leaders in the locker room make it so easy and welcoming:
“It’s after a rep, it’s after a drill. Whether it’s him asking questions or whether them helping him get up to speed, that’s what you want to see from the rookies is not feel like there’s that wall between them and the vets communication-wise. Not to be intimidated. That just speaks to the character of the veterans that we have on the team and that defense specifically.”
Hill still projects to fill a rotational role in the backfield that will help right away, though there was that fun moment where coaches had to shoot down the idea he couldn’t play boundary corner, too.
Either way, Hill’s saying and doing the right things to the point coaches feel the need to point it out. Given what we know about the locker room culture, this isn’t necessarily just standard good offseason vibes before training camp starts too.
