CINCINNATI — Dylan Fairchild is already in contact with some of the key figures on the Bengals roster. Cincinnati’s third-round pick this weekend spoke with the media in the Bengals locker room about getting texts from Joe Burrow.

“He texted me,” Fairchild said about Burrow. “It was awesome. Yeah. He just let me know if I need anything, to let him know that he’s excited to work.”

The 6-foot-5, 218-pound masher is about to mix into the starting race for both guard spots as neither spot’s been locked down in recent years. He mostly played left guard at Georgia, earning 2024 second-team Associated Press All-American and second-team All-SEC honors.

“Yeah, just meet these guys, you know, put faces with names and just kind of admire and sit back and take pieces from everybody’s brain,” Fairchild noted. “Pick brains and just put it all into my own little bowl, and just get to know these guys on a personal level and just really make deep connections.”

Fairchild sounds ready to seamlessly fit into the culture at Paycor Stadium as workouts ramp up more and more in the coming months.