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TE Utecht officially a Bengal
He caught 31 passes for 364 yards and one TD in 14 games for the Colts last season.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Restricted free agent tight end Ben Utecht became the newest member of the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday, March 22, when the Indianapolis Colts declined to match the three-year, $9 million offer sheet Utecht signed with the Bengals.
Cincinnati signed Utecht on March 14, and the Colts had a week to match, but they failed to meet a midnight Friday, March 21, deadline.
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Get latest headlines via RSS feeds"Ben is a fine addition to our team," Bengals tight ends coach Jonathan Hayes said, "and he'll be a great complement to (starter) Reggie Kelly."
The 6-foot-6, 251-pounder from the University of Minnesota caught 31 passes for 364 yards and one TD in 14 games with 13 starts for the Colts in 2007.
Utecht gives quarterback Carson Palmer another target in the Bengals' potent passing game and saves the club from spending a draft pick on a tight end during the April 26-27 draft.
The Bengals aren't required to compensate Indianapolis with a draft choice because Utecht entered the NFL as a college free agent and was not tendered by the Colts beyond draft-status level.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2253 or cludwig@DaytonDailyNews.com.
