Bengals first-round DE admits to not taking NFL work ethic "as serious as I should"

Myles Murphy is holding himself accountable for underachieving as he enters a critical third season with the Cincinnati Bengals.

Pittsburgh Steelers v Cincinnati Bengals | Todd Rosenberg/GettyImagesThe Cincinnati Bengals might not have had to endure a contract dispute with rookie first-round pick Shemar Stewart — or even Trey Hendrickson's ongoing hold-in — if Myles Murphy had hit the ground running in the NFL.

Murphy was a 5-star recruit who flashed well enough in three seasons at Clemson for the Bengals to select him 28th overall in the 2023 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, the 23-year-old's youth and naïveté were exposed once he hit the pros. After logging three sacks as a rookie, he posted a big…