Ten days ago, the Seattle Seahawks released former Iowa tight end Noah Fant following a three-year stint with the organization.

It was a difficult three years in Seattle for the former Hawkeye star, who struggled to find consistency after being traded away by the Denver Broncos in the Russell Wilson deal. Fant was still a solid contributor in Seattle, but he never reached the heights that he reached in Denver.

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Now, Fant has a chance to reinvent his career with a new team.

Adam Schefter of ESPN was the first to report that Fant has agreed to a one-year deal with the Cincinnati Bengals for the 2025 season.

This is a great opportunity for Fant to regain his Denver form, when he put together three good seasons. Fant is still just 27 years old and should have a lot of tread left on his tires. And his fit within the Cincinnati offense makes a ton of sense on paper.

Fant will get to play with one of the best quarterbacks in the league in Joe Burrow. The 6-foot-4, 249-pound tight end joins a receiving core that features Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, one of the best wide receiver duos in the NFL.

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And he’ll play for an offensive-minded head coach in Zac Taylor, who loves to pass the ball a lot and get all of his pass-catchers involved. This is almost a perfect situation for Fant, who can prove himself on a one-year deal and then re-enter the free agent market in 2026.

Fant is an incredibly talented tight end who struggled to fit in with Seattle’s offensive system. In Cincinnati, he has a chance to rewrite the narrative of his career and to go from an average first-round pick to the star everyone thought he could be coming out of Iowa.

It’ll be fun to see how the Bengals utilize Fant’s talents alongside Burrow, Chase, and Higgins.

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This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Former Iowa football star Noah Fant inks deal with Cincinnati Bengals