The Cincinnati Bengals have signed linebacker Rey Maualuga to a contract extension worth $15 million dollars. The three year deal reportedly carries $4.5 million in guaranteed money. Maualuga was scheduled to hit free agency on March 10.
NEWS: #Bengals re-sign @maualuga58 to a 3-year deal pic.twitter.com/twx2A43pmV
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) March 5, 2015
@Bengals @maualuga58 Congrats to my USO ! On the new Deal good stuff bro well deserved! #Whodey pic.twitter.com/osnRW8FChs
— Domata Peko (@DomataPeko) March 5, 2015
.@maualuga58‘s reaction to being re-signed: http://t.co/xDiS95UPSZpic.twitter.com/jlpBHY1wMx
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) March 6, 2015
The former University of Southern California product was a unanimous All American his final year in college before being drafted by the Bengals in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft, pick number thirty-eight. Maualuga played immediately and became a fixture in a very good Bengals linebacking corp. As Coley Harvey of ESPN points out, Maualuga is one of the few linebackers the Bengals have invested a draft pick on.
One of the few linebackers the Bengals have actually drafted in recent seasons — others such as Vincent Rey, Emmanuel Lamur, Jayson DiManche and Vontaze Burfict were all undrafted free-agent signings — Maualuga has been viewed as a cornerstone of the defense. The Bengals hoped to use the middle linebacker as one of the focal points of their defense when he was first selected. They maintained that view of him in 2013 when he was re-signed to a two-year contract extension.
Congratulations to the Bengals and to Maualuga and good luck this coming season! You can follow the Bengals on twitter at @Bengals and follow Maualuga at @maualuga58.
