Saturday, May 08, 1999Ambrose's exit all but sealed
BY GEOFF HOBSON
The Cincinnati EnquirerThe Corey Sawyer signing means Ashley Ambrose is all but out as a Bengal. Sawyer spoke with his fellow cornerback Friday, telling Ambrose he was returning to Cincinnati.
“He told me to go back there and show them I deserved to be starting on the other side of him last year,” Sawyer said.
Sawyer wouldn't reveal his contract, but the Bengals have made it clear they were looking for a veteran corner to play this year for less than $1 million.
That's well below Ambrose's number. He apparently still is looking for at least $4 million a year, plus the Bengals now have four corners in Sawyer, Artrell Hawkins, Thomas Randolph and rookie Charles Fisher. Safeties Tremain Mack and Cory Hall also can work there.
Ambrose probably is going to wait until June 1, when teams can free up salary cap room by cutting players. Sawyer didn't want to wait until then. The 49ers were interested but had no cap room. The Vikings also called but are more interested in a bigger corner, such as Ryan McNeil, courted by the Bengals last month.
SIGN IN, PLEASE: A total of five NFL draft picks have agreed to contracts, and the Bengals have signed two of them. Plus, they're closing in on fourth-round pick Craig Yeast, a wide receiver out of Kentucky.
Leigh Steinberg, the agent for first-round pick Akili Smith, said Friday the Bengals have opened preliminary talks. Although he can't get a read from the club on timing, Steinberg doesn't anticipate problems.
BIENIEMY TO EAGLES: The Eagles signed Eric Bieniemy to a one-year contract Friday. The free agent was a Bengals running back for the past four season.
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