This is a cool program.
The Cincinnati Bengals have signed another undrafted free agent, but this one doesn’t count as a roster spot for now.
Dante Barnett is a defensive tackle from Birmingham, England. The Bengals signed him through the NFL’s International Player Pathway (IPP) program. Through this program, Barnett will not count for a normal roster spot unless he were to make the team. He could also remain with the team all season as a designated 17th practice squad player.
Barnett is a descendant of Jamaica but grew up in Birmingham, England, where he began playing American football as a teenager. After working his way in to the NFL Academy in Leicestershire and spending three years there, he set his sights on playing for a major college program in the United States.
Unfortunately, Barnett didn’t meet the academic requirements but played one year at Dickinson College, a Division 2 program in Pennsylvania, before ultimately moving back to England.
He took part in the University of South Florida’s Pro Day in March and ran an impressive 4.69 40-yard dash. For a defensive tackle at 6-foot-1 and 275 pounds, that is a pretty good time.
Barnett was one of 13 players who made the cut for the IPP Program, and now he will have a chance to find his NFL home in Cincinnati.
