Bengals fans celebrate a playoff win in Buffalo with cornerback Eli Apple.
Eli Apple, a free agent defensive back who started at cornerback for the Cincinnati Bengals the past two seasons, tweeted “dialed in” with a dolphin emoji Saturday night after multiple reports said he had agreed to a deal with the Miami Dolphins earlier in the day.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Network said earlier that Apple is about to sign a one-year deal with Miami. Apple has argued with people on social media, including Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill. When Hill was on the Chiefs and the Bengals beat them in the AFC Championship in 2022, Apple said on Twitter that he would get Hill and another Chiefs receiver, Mecole Hardman, tickets to the Super Bowl, but he didn’t.
The New York Giants picked Apple in the first round of the 2016 draft. He started 30 of the Bengals’ 31 regular-season games and all seven of their playoff games.
On Saturday, Kelsey Conway of the Enquirer wrote that Bengals cornerbacks coach Chuck Burks had been impressed with Chidobe Awuzie’s recovery from an ACL tear. That rookie corner DJ Turner has done well in training camp.
Apple joined the Bengals in 2021. He had played for the Carolina Panthers for one season. In February 2022, Panthers reporter Sheena Quick tweeted that former Panthers head coach Matt Rhule told Apple that he would “never play anywhere again” when Carolina let him go in 2020.
Apple said it was dirty for New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones to dive at Apple’s knees last December. Jones blocked Apple for a few yards behind Germaine Pratt’s return of an interception, which was ruled not to count after a review.
Chiefs wrap up Travis Kelce, who used to be a star for the University of Cincinnati Bearcats, said that Jones probably got tired of Apple because Apple “talks a lot of s—-.”
As Apple starts his eighth NFL season, Miami would be his fifth team.
The Bengals won’t play the Dolphins during the upcoming season.