It’s not often you see an undrafted rookie step onto the field during the first quarter of an NFL preseason game. Cincinnati Bengals edge rusher Darius Hodge would soon prove why he’s the exception.
Hodge didn’t really stand out on his first snap of the game. With 8:11 left in the first period, the Bengals had the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a third-and-10 situation. Hodge tried to work his pass rush inside after exploding out of a four-point stance with fellow impressive rookie Joseph Ossai screaming off the opposite edge.
The Buccaneers would convert the third down, but the fact that Hodge was out there with other prominent members of the Bengals’ second-team defense does say a lot on its own.