Safety Daxton Hill inks official rookie deal with Cincinnati Bengals

A little more than two weeks after the 2022 NFL Draft, Cincinnati Bengals rookie Daxton Hill is officially putting pen to paper on his rookie deal on Wednesday. The former Michigan star and the Bengals came to terms on the contract that will keep him in Cincinnati through at least 2025, according to insider Ian Rapoport.

The Wolverines star will make a total of $11.6 million over the next four years, including a $5.6 million signing bonus. He will make a base salary of $2.1 million in 2022 and also has a fifth-year option for 2026.

The Bengals selected Hill with the No. 31 overall pick on night one of the draft. He was the second former Wolverine off of the board, following edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson at No. 2 to the Lions.

Hill had 69 total tackles, including 42 solo stops, and two interceptions for the Wolverines in 2021. He was an integral part of the Wolverine secondary, earning All-Big Ten honors, including a first-team nomination from league coaches.

Out of high school, Hill was a five-star recruit and the No. 8 prospect in the country from the Class of 2019, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Cincinnati Bengals ‘really excited’ to land Daxton Hill

The Bengals are plenty excited to add the Michigan star to their defense.

“Daxton Hill has been a tremendous player for a long time,” head coach Zac Taylor said after the draft. “He’s a great player coming out of Tulsa, Oklahoma. He’s been at Michigan the last three years and has made a tremendous impact on one of the best defenses in all of college football. He played a lot of different roles for them. Everyone in that building speaks very highly of Dax — not only the play style but the intangibles.

“The stuff on the field, and the stuff off the field. As you guys know, that’s exactly the type of traits that we look for in our players. He embodies everything that we’ve searched to be about. We’re really excited that he was where he was last night in the draft and that we were able to get him at No. 31 and add him to the mix. He’s going to be a great weapon for us for a long time.”