Former CFL wideout Dohnte Meyers has been fighting an uphill battle his entire professional football career - now the 26-year-old wide receiver has a chance to achieve his dream with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Meyers is slated to play for the Bengals in their preseason opener against the Detroit Lions on Thursday, which would be his first taste of NFL action.
Meyers was a zero-star recruit out of high school in Georgia, and played his college ball at Presbyterian College in South Carolina - a Division II school. “I got to Presbyterian because I was smart and I returned kicks,” Meyers said, per The Athletic’s Paul Dehner.
Meyers went undrafted after three years at Presbyterian, and after an unsuccessful tryout with the Atlanta Falcons, there were few options available for the young player.
Rather than give up and look for another job, Meyers doubled down and committed to improving while also promising “to do every tryout, every opportunity, and let the chips fall where they may,” Meyers said.
Part of the motivation was thanks to his parents, who supported him in his goal even when there were no apparent doors open. “They were like, ‘You chase your dream. You’re young. Do it,’” Meyers said. “My parents are big believers in chasing dreams. This is what you want to do? Act on it.”
His first opportunity came when a trainer he was working out with, Manny Rodriguez, got in contact with Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback Trevor Harris and set up a tryout north of the border.
The tryout resulted in a futures contract with no guarantees and an unusual jersey number in 74.
“When he first came in, Dohnte was wearing 74,” Harris said, per Dehner. “He was like, ‘Trev, I can’t be wearing this ugly number, man.’ I said, ‘You got to go make some plays and they will get you a new number.’ Next day, they put him in 88.”
Meyers saw limited action in his first season in Saskatchewan in 2024, but was impressive when on the field. He caught 24 passes for 349 yards and a touchdown in four games.
But Harris knew there was more there. “Guys from Division II that grind through the muck, they are tougher than a $2 steak, mentally and physically,” Harris said. “He ended up catching a touchdown and broke his wrist in his first preseason game and played through the game.”
His breakout came last season, when he caught 65 passes for 1,056 yards and eight touchdowns and helped the Roughriders to a Grey Cup title over the Montreal Alouettes.
“Not only did he have that explosiveness in his route running, he was just a tremendous guy, he was learning every day, staying after practice,” said Harris. “He [was] constantly in my ear asking how can I do this route, shave this route better. He’s really good about finding voids in zones and [slowing] his body down. He’s kind of the full package.”
Coaches have been excited about what they’ve seen from Meyers in camp with the Bengals to this point. “He’s got real juice,” offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher said.
“We noticed him in the spring, certainly,” head coach Zac Taylor said. “So then you get a chance to really go back and pay attention to his past in Canada and college. He’s had a lot of production in his lifetime. It’s just finding ways for him to try to make a play, and he’s shown up. We’re not going out of our way to showcase him. He’s just finding ways to show up and make some plays.”
The Bengals feature a loaded wide receiver room, including superstars in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, as well as promising youngsters in Mitchell Tinsley and Andrei Iosivas.
It’s likely that Meyers will need to earn a role on special teams - the same spot he used to impress Presbyterian early in his football career - in order to stick on the Bengals roster through training camp.
He’s open to any role, as long as he lands on the roster.
“Honestly, I just cherish every opportunity,” he said. “Regardless if it’s at the returner, in the offence, every opportunity is scarce. I believe if you’re on a professional football team, they call your number, whatever that role is, you’re trying to maximize it just so that you know you can be trusted. I feel like that’s kind of what my role is now. Just prove that you want to earn the trust of the locker room and the respect, regardless of how I got here.”
