Amarius Mims is a large man at 6-foot-8 and 340 pounds.

So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the former Georgia offensive tackle is able to shrug off a little criticism.

After the Cincinnati Bengals selected Mims with the No. 18 pick in the first round, former Alabama head coach Nick Saban had some sharp words about Mims.

“This guy’s got all the tools -- he’s got great size, he’s got great power,” Saban said on Thursday. “But it makes you wonder, how did the guy only start 8 [games?] Like, in the SEC championship game, he played only the first 15 plays of the game and then he’s out. Takes himself out. I don’t know what he injured, what he hurt, whatever. But you’ve got to be a little bit more consistent in your performance if you’re going to be a great player and a starter in the National Football League.”

When Mims spoke to reporters on Friday, the former Georgia offensive tackle shrugged off the remarks.

“Everybody has their own opinions of me,” Mims told reporters. “I don’t really care about what he said or what he had to say, honestly. I’m just glad to be a Cincinnati Bengal.”

Mims was one of two Georgia Bulldogs to go in the first round of this year’s draft, as Brock Bowers was taken with the No. 13 overall pick by the Las Vegas Raiders.

It was not an easy path to the draft for the Georgia offensive tackle. His game was consistently nitpicked because he had only eight career starts at Georgia.

Much of that though is not Mims’ fault. He missed six games in 2023 after sustaining an early-season ankle injury. He returned to the field, only to leave the SEC championship game with another injury.

Mims also didn’t make his first career start until the 14th game in his sophomore season. Georgia had two offensive tackles taken in the 2023 NFL Draft in Broderick Jones and Warren McClendon.

But as both Kirby Smart and now Cincinnati Bengals coach Zac Taylor recognize, Mims got plenty of experience in practice blocking NFL draft picks such as Travon Walker, Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith.

“He’s gotten the experience in practice even when he wasn’t starting, playing against all of these top draft picks,” Taylor said. “As good as competition as there is out there. It’s just an inexperience level in games, but that’s why we felt comfortable with how we’re built. With the two tackles that we have, we’re the right team to take him on.”

Georgia has had 42 players taken in the last four NFL drafts. Georgia finished tied for sixth in this year’s draft with eight selections.