Throughout the summer leading up to the regular season, we will go through the entire 2024 Cincinnati Bengals roster. Every single day until the season opener against the New England Patriots , we will break down a player on the roster including his background, contract status, and path towards making the team.
Today, we take a look at another UDFA linebacker in Maema Njongmeta after focusing on Aaron Casey yesterday. The two rookies will naturally be linked together this offseason as they won't be too far apart on the depth chart. What can Njongmeta do to separate from his fellow rookie and other linebackers?
Maema Njongmeta
- Age: 23
- Year: 1st
- Position: Linebacker
- College: Wisconsin
- Previous Teams: None
- Jersey Number: 45
Njonemeta signed with the Bengals as an undrafted free agent following the 2024 NFL Draft. He spent his entire college career at Wisconsin where he appeared in at least one game in all four of his active seasons. COVID took away most of his freshman season and he remained a backup in 2021 as a sophomore.
2022 was set up to be Njongmeta's first year as a starter and he took advantage, leading the Badgers with 95 tackles and becoming a All-Big Ten honorable mention. He started 11 games that season and started 10 the next year in 2023. His production slipped a bit as a senior, but his total work as a student athlete did no such thing. He earned Academic All-Big Ten honors for all four years as a double major in finance and investment banking.
Njongmeta finished his college career with 158 tackles, 20 tackles for loss, three passes defensed, and an interception. A subpar NFL Scouting Combine performance may've played a part in him going undrafted, but he improved his 40-yard dash time from 4.91 to 4.78 at Wisconsin's pro day.
Contract details
Njongmeta signed a three-year college free agent deal with the Bengals in May that will pay him the minimum salary for the 2024 season.
His salary will cost $795,000 for the entire season if he's kept on the team for the entire regular season, but with a $15,000 signing bonus prorated throughout the deal, his cap hit as of now is $800,000 for the year.
Roster chances
We've now covered all four linebackers behind the Bengals' top four at the position, and they should all be viewed as equals entering training camp. Njongmeta happens to be the youngest of the four vying for what could be the fifth and final spot on the initial 53-man roster.
There's not a lot to say about Njongmeta that hasn't already been said about Casey and the rest. Training camp will be about testing mettle and earning preseason snaps. What they all do with those snaps will greatly impact their chances of lasting throught cuts, as will special teams projection.
Njongmeta's goal and path towards achieving it is simple. The free-for-all will begin later this month.
Chances of making the roster: 25%
Previous player breakdowns
Related: Bengals Roster Breakdown: Aaron Casey's past leadership will serve him well as a rookie in Cincinnati
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