The Cincinnati Bengals are currently taking part in training camp as they gear up for the 2025 NFL season. The Bengals are desperately hoping for some improvement from their defense, which was a disaster for the most part in 2024 and kept them out of the playoffs despite another elite season from quarterback Joe Burrow.

The Bengals attempted to alleviate this area of need by drafting pass rusher Shemar Stewart in the first round of this year's NFL Draft. Stewart initially had a drawn out contract saga that had some fans wondering whether he would opt to return to college, but he has since signed on with the Bengals organization.

However, at practice on Wednesday, there was an incident in which Stewart was issued a warning from some of his teammates about a line he crossed.

“Shemar Stewart and Lucas Patrick got into a scuffle when Stewart broke through and shoved Joe Burrow,” reported Mike Petraglia of the Jungle Roar Pod on X, formerly Twitter.

Bengals offensive lineman Ted Karras noted that “We did what we had to do … but (Shemar) has to be smarter than that. (Burrow) is all our hopes and dreams,” reported Petraglia.

A learning moment

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Bengals continue training camp Monday July 28, 2025. Players and coaches ran drills outside on the practice lawn until rain moved the camp to the Bengals' inside practice facility. Bengals Shemar Stewart (97) at camp.
Phil Didion/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

As Karras noted, any hopes that the Bengals have of getting back to their contender status of the early 2020s rests on the shoulders of Joe Burrow, who has turned himself into one of the best quarterbacks in the league after being drafted in 2020.

Burrow also has an elite receiving core led by Ja'Marr Chase, who is looking to stake his claim as the best wide receiver in the NFL this year–he's currently in a two-man race with former LSU teammate Justin Jefferson for that honor.

However, the Bengals will need Shemar Stewart to have a big rookie season if they want to truly compete in 2025. There still has been no progress on the Trey Hendrickson contract front, meaning pass rushing could be a major area of need in 2025, which is precisely why they drafted Stewart to begin with.

Cincinnati will kick off its 2025 season on the road against the Cleveland Browns on September 7.

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