A Former Badger Ranks as One of the Top Rookies After First Week of Preseason

Pro Football Focus (PFF) released their highest graded rookies of week one and one former Badger found himself on the list -- but it may not be who fans might expect. Cincinnati Bengal Maema Njongmeta was the third-highest graded rookie of the week after a stellar performance.

Njongmeta went undrafted in the 2024 NFL Draft, but a strong showing in the first week of preseason puts him on a good track to make the Bengals' 53-man roster. In his first game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he lead all players with 10 combined tackles.

Both former Badgers Braelon Allen and Tanor Bortolini were drafted, but it was Njongmeta who scored the highest with PFF in the first week. He led the Bengals in snap count, tackles and was second in passes defended. His knock coming out of Wisconsin was his size and poor testing, but the linebacker showed up when it mattered.

Njongmeta was listed as the a fourth-string linebacker on the Bengals' unofficial depth chart before the game. We'll see if anything changes now after his performance. The Bengals' next preseason comes against the Chicago Bears on August 17th.