In return to Cincinnati, Detroit Lions happy DJ Reader is now their 'steady force' in the middle of the defense
Allen Park — In the final season of the four-year contract he signed with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2020, defensive tackle D.J. Reader was certain his future remained with the franchise.
Reader believed it enough to upgrade his living situation that year, purchasing a downtown condo a mere two-minute walk from the team’s practice facility and home stadium.
A formidable force in the middle of the defense, almost from the moment he arrived in the league as a fifth-round draft pick out of Clemson, Reader came into his own as a leader with the Bengals in a way he couldn’t during his first four seasons, while playing alongside stalwarts Brian Cushing and J.J. Watt in Houston.
With the Bengals, Reader was part of the foundation that fueled a worst-to-first turnaround. The team held the No. 1 pick when he signed, drafting quarterback Joe Burrow the following month. Two years later, Cincinnati was playing in the Super Bowl.
That’s why, no matter how things ultimately went down in Cincinnati, leading Reader to Detroit, he’ll always hold that time of his career, the city and its fans, near and dear.
“I went to the Super Bowl there, I was a captain there, so it holds a special place in my heart,” Reader said. “The city always showed me love. I enjoyed being in the city. That magical run, seeing the city, seeing what life you really brought — probably similar to the guys playing here (in Detroit) when they first went to the playoffs — you really seem to breathe life into them, and they breathe it back into you.”