On paper, Cincinnati Bengals rookie Tahj Brooks has a major uphill climb to playing time in 2025. 

But games aren’t played on paper, right? 

Brooks, Cincinnati’s sixth-round pick out of Texas Tech, though, is starting to catch the eyes of onlookers before training camp this summer. 

“For him to be there in the sixth round when we got him; we’re really lucky that he fell to us at that point,” Bengals head coach Zac Taylor told broadcaster Dan Hoard. 

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Brooks is pro-ready in a similar way to other late-round backs the Bengals have drafted in recent years, having rushed for 1,500-plus yards in each of his final two college seasons. 

Now, he arrives in Cincinnati with a chance to push others like Kendall Milton on the back end of the depth chart behind Chase Brown, Samaje Perine and Zack Moss. 

Perine was brought back in free agency and figures to have the lead over the returning-from-injury and contract-adjusted Moss, so perhaps Brooks can push Moss with a strong summer.

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This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Bengals late-round rookie RB earning praise ahead of training camp