CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday publicly raised questions regarding a key player in the team’s stadium discussion with Hamilton County and his connection to the Cleveland Browns.
The Bengals said in a statement that David Abrams, whom the county has hired as a consultant to assist in lease negotiations with the Bengals, is also providing services to the Browns. Without making any direct claims, Cincinnati raised questions about whether Abrams could be compromised in his negotiations with the Bengals.
“The team has expressed concern to the county that a stadium consultant performing services for the Cleveland Browns might not have Cincinnati’s best interests at heart,” the Bengals said in their statement.
Abrams is employed by Inner Circle Sports, which declined to comment when reached by ESPN on Thursday.
Hamilton County released its own statement denying the Bengals’ assertion about Abrams’ role but did acknowledge a link between Inner Circle Sports and the Browns.
“Mr. Abrams has no involvement with the Browns, their stadium project and/or related matters,” the county said. “This was explained to the team and they were previously given Abrams’ contract and scope of work, which does not include any state lobbying.”
The county said a different individual is working for the Browns as a contractor for Inner Circle Sports and that the third-party group “has not received or shared proprietary information involving the Bengals or the county.”
The Bengals have until June 30 to exercise the first of five two-year options that extend their agreement with Hamilton County on Paycor Stadium. If the option isn’t picked up, Cincinnati’s lease on its current stadium will end after the 2025 season.
Both the Bengals and the Browns are looking to secure investment from the state of Ohio for their respective stadiums.
The Browns are eyeing a mixed-use complex in nearby Brook Park that is estimated to cost around $3 billion, with at least $1.2 billion of that coming from private funding. On Tuesday, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell traveled to Columbus and met with legislators at the Ohio capitol to discuss the Browns’ proposal.
The Bengals and Hamilton County have been working toward a stadium renovation of $830 million under a framework approved by the county’s commissioner board in late April. The framework allocated $210 million, with $120 million from the team, for the first part of a three-phase process. However, that could dissolve if the two sides fail to reach a long-term extension on the lease before June 30.
Hamilton County and the Bengals had appeared to be making progress toward an agreement. However, also on Thursday, the county fired law firm Frost Brown Todd and attorney Tom Gabelman, who had worked with the county dating back to 1997 on project negotiations. In a statement provided to ESPN, Gabelman said discussions were “substantially advanced” on a long-term agreement to keep the Bengals at Paycor Stadium before the county’s change to the Dinsmore law firm.
Hamilton County contracted Abrams in October 2023 to assist with its negotiations with the Bengals. According to his Inner Circle Sports bio, Abrams has advised on stadium funding projects in Atlanta, Houston, Miami, Jacksonville and Nashville.
In addition to Hamilton County’s denial that Abrams is involved with the Browns, a source familiar with Cleveland’s respective negotiations corroborated that to ESPN on Thursday.
However, the Bengals say he might have a conflict of interest.
“The county can decide how it wants to proceed, but the team felt it appropriate to share concerns over whether parties involved in discussions were working exclusively to advance local interests — or whether other conflicts might exist,” the Bengals said.
ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi contributed to this report.
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