Emmanuel

Lamur

Lamur appeared in all 32 games for the Vikings the past two seasons but wasn’t a starter and mainly focused on special teams. Prior to Minnesota, Lamur played for the Bengals and new Raiders DC Paul Guenther. His signing wouldn’t move the needle.

The ex-Vikings and Bengals reserve had struggled to get on the field this season. Lamur’s Raiders career ends after 145 snaps. 2019 will be his age-30 campaign.

Lamur, 29 in June, has bounced between the Bengals and Vikings since entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent out of Kansas State. In Oakland, Lamur will compete for a special teams role and backup snaps at linebacker.

An undrafted free agent out of Kansas State last season, Lamur was overshadowed by Vontaze Burfict, but acquitted himself well in 136 snaps on defense. All of his snaps came after Week 9. Lamur isn’t in the mix for a starting job, but could be the Bengals’ top reserve linebacker while featuring on special teams.

Maualuga was one of the few weak spots on an excellent defense, too often getting burned for big plays throughout the season as well as in the playoff loss to the Texans. The Bengals would be better off moving Vontaze Burfict to the middle and giving surprising rookie Emmanuel Lamur a shot on the outside. SLB Manny Lawson is also a free agent.

Burfict played weak-side ‘backer in 2012 as an undrafted rookie, and went on to lead the team in tackles. He’ll shift to the middle with free agent Rey Maualuga likely gone, and Lamur will step in on the weak side. Lamur is an athletic player out of Kansas State who was promoted from the practice squad in Week 9.

Lamur was competing for playing time at outside linebacker and is also a core special teamer. Look for UDFA Jayson DiManche to make the Bengals.

Lamur is done for the night. The second-year athletic linebacker is one of the better backups on the roster. Lamur isn’t much of a pass rusher, but he can drop into coverage and play the run. He and James Harrison will likely split reps at strong-side ‘backer as long as Lamur’s injury isn’t a long-term issue.

Lamur spent all of 2013 on injured reserve, but new DC Paul Guenther believes he has the ability to be an every-down linebacker. He’s expected to see heavy snaps on passing downs. “He’s got good ball awareness in zone and he’s a good man-to-man guy,” Guenther said. “He’s a guy you like to go to with everyone playing two tight ends. He’s tall and he can run with those guys and you don’t get caught in a mismatch.” Still only 24 (in June), Lamur could play himself into a big role with a strong camp.

The Bengals tendered Lamur at the second-round level, so no other team was going to part with a pick and pay Lamur. He appeared in 15 games last season, but graded out as PFF’s 39th-ranked 4-3 outside linebacker out of 40 qualifiers. Lamur may face competition for his starting job this summer.