Sheldon Rankins and BJ Hill should help bolster a Cincinnati Bengals defense that ranked near the bottom of the league last year. Rookie Kris Jenkins Jr. should get plenty of work under center, but the question that remains to be answered is who’s next.

Enter Travis Bell, a seventh-round pick of the Chicago Bears and the first Kennesaw State graduate ever selected in the draft. Bell, 6-foot-4 and 300 pounds, began the year on the Bears’ practice squad before being signed by the Atlanta Falcons. The Bengals signed him in December of last year after DJ Reader suffered a season-ending quad injury.

Bell was one of the most athletic defensive tackles in the draft, finishing in the 82nd percentile in athleticism. In his final season at Kennesaw State, he posted a 13.7% run stop rate, ranking in the top 10 in all of college football in that category, according to Gridiron Grading.

Bell made an immediate impact for the Bengals on Saturday night against Tampa Bay, recording three tackles and a sack in his first appearance since joining the team.

Dave Lapham, a former Bengals offensive lineman and now radio host who has been with the team for over 40 years, took notice.

“He lived a dream,” Lapham said. “Man, he played exceptionally well. This guy controlled the line of scrimmage when he was in the football game. He reversed the line of scrimmage and pushed the offensive linemen back. He moved the offensive line back and ran them over.”

Bell’s size may remind some of another former Bengal, Geno Adkins, who at 6-foot-1, 295 pounds was a fixture at the center of Cincinnati’s defense for 10 years and finished with 75.5 sacks.

“He showed up,” Lapham concluded. “Opportunity knocked, Bell rang the bell. He made plays. He tells people, ‘Pay attention to me. I’ll do it again.’ I think Bell answers the bell.”