Irv Smith Jr. on Joe Burrow: 'He's an Amazing Competitor'

Cincinnati signed the young tight end last month.

CINCINNATI — Irv Smith Jr. is experiencing his first day with teammates in the Bengals facility. One peer who had a direct influence on his signing with Cincinnati was Joe Burrow.

The tight end described how impressed he's been with the MVP-finalist's game. Getting the chance to start played a big role as well.

"It was definitely a big deal," Smith said about the open starting spot. "Being here in OTAs I just want to come in, learn the offense. Get close to the guys ... and just get to work you know, it's exciting beginning a new journey. ... I'm excited to get to know Joe (Burrow). Work with him. He's an amazing competitor. Amazing, an amazing guy. I'm just ready."

Smith has dealt with a list of injuries that made him a bargain option in this year's tight-end market. He's ready to put those random nicks and bruises in the rearview mirror.

"Yeah, I feel great," Smith said. "You know, all of that is kind of behind me. I've put in a lot of work this offseason so far. And I'm just excited to show the coaches and my teammates the work that I put in and moving forward just you know, leading up to the season, but you know, today is Day 1, so we're gonna start there and build on it."

Smith's played in just 22 games over the last two seasons, but Cincinnati's recent starting tight ends have done a nice job of staying relatively healthy.

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