CINCINNATI — The Bengals have become a real destination for those seeking a Super Bowl ring in the NFL.
Part of that is Joe Burrow, of course. Part of that is winning back-to-back AFC North titles, making one Super Bowl and coming within a few bad breaks in the closing seconds of the AFC Championship of a second straight appearance in the big game.
But a bigger part of it is actually the culture the Bengals have built inside the locker room. Head coach Zac Taylor and his coaches have played a huge part of building it. But so too have the players who have committed themselves to the program over the last several years.
Drew Sample was the second pick of the Zac Taylor era after Jonah Williams in 2019. He’s seen the personal and collective highs and lows, and everything in between. The first two seasons, there was the painful and painstaking foundation building, bringing in the right people and players who could withstand the losing.
Sample, the tight end out of the University of Washington, is coming off knee surgery last fall and is committed to seeing the light at the end of the tunnel this season. He definitely believes “Bengal Culture” is a real thing, and that amassing players who “love ball” is paying off big.
“I think so. I mean, it was here,” Sample told me. “I’ve been here since 2019 and every year you kind of feel that change. And even when we weren’t winning games, we felt like we had a really strong culture. And then that started translating to winning games. And it’s on the field and off the field, and I think that’s a reason a lot of guys want to come here and want to be a part of this because of that.”
Drew Sample is back and looking to contribute a "winning" Bengals culture. pic.twitter.com/tqrPNLT9Ic
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) May 8, 2023
That building for 2023 take a big step this week when eight drafted rookies and undrafted college free agents turn out for the annual rookie minicamp outside Paycor Stadium.
The Bengals are expected to officially announce their group of UDFAs this week after they sign and pass their physicals.
When the group of first-year players arrive in Cincinnati, they will be the latest to experience the culture that has been put in place by Taylor, his staff and the veteran players who are already on site taking part in offseason workouts.
This week will mark the unofficial start to phase two of the offseason program, when teams can start having on-field practices and applying what their learning in the classroom and applying it on the field. It’s a big time for communication to be be installed and for rookies and those new to the system to start learning how to communicate with each other on the field.
Off the field, that communication has already begun between veterans who have been in the organization for a while and those veterans who signed in free agency.
The Bengals added Orlando Brown Jr. as their new starting left tackle along with backup lineman Cody Ford in free agency. They signed safety Nick Scott, corner Sidney Jones IV, tight end Irv Smith Jr. and edge Tarell Basham.
“I think the draft for current players is always a little bit weird,” starting center Ted Karras said on Monday. “This is a performance business, with thousands of guys every trying to take your job every single year. It was a fantastic draft for the O-line, for current guys. I was really happy for the unit that we didn’t bring in any early (round) guys but obviously we added some new talent already this year.”
Ted Karras on Alex Cappa and that winning vibe in Bengals locker room. pic.twitter.com/Y3nyoWJHgp
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) May 8, 2023
Karras, a product of the Illinois Fighting Illini program, will also be blocking for a new running back this year, also out of the Land of Lincoln.
“Really excited for Chase Brown, Illinois alum, probably the best part of Illinois football for the last couple of years,” Karras said. “Really happy to have him on the team.”
Winning and successful leadership go hand-in-hand. Karras already established himself as a foundation in his first year last season.
Nickel corner Mike Hilton is another. Hilton has been a leader in the locker room ever since joining the Bengals in 2021. He came in with Chido Awuzie and Trey Hendrickson. Before that season began, the Bengals also acquired B.J. Hill. In 2020, it was Vonn Bell and DJ Reader. And of course last year it was Karras, Alex Cappa, La’el Collins and Hayden Hurst.
“It’s grown over these last couple of years,” Hilton told me. “From my first year here, obviously where we started, to where we are now. The mentality has changed, the confidence has changed. Guys really love playing for each other.”
Mike Hilton says "everyone" wants to see Chiefs Bengals NFL opening night in KC when schedule is released. pic.twitter.com/lAiCpkzh54
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) May 8, 2023
Added Sample, “I just think we’ve got a lot of good guys in here that really make it easy for new guys to come in. I’ve been here, shoot one of the longest now it feels like. So it’s cool for me having just been in the city a long time (to help) whether it’s Trevor (Siemian) or other guys coming in. Whatever they need, I’m here. I have a house here. I’ve lived here. I know some areas and like a lot of other guys do, too.
“But I just think our mentality is like, ‘Hey, we bring guys in and we know the staff thinks they can help us win. So let’s get them going. Let’s get him up to speed and let’s roll.’ So I think that’s just been something that’s been great for me when I came in. There was a lot of vets here and so now I’m kind of on the other end of that, and so for me, I always want to help guys and I think that makes it easier when everyone feels that way.”
Trevor Siemian is looking forward to his chance to compete with Jake Browning for the backup to Joe Burrow this season on the Bengals roster. The job will no longer belong to Brandon Allen, who signed recently with the San Francisco 49ers. Siemian has good knowledge of what to expect from offensive coordinator and vice versa since the two worked together with Peyton Manning on the 2015 Denver Broncos.
On Sept. 25, 2016, Siemian had the best day of his career to date, completing 23-of-35 passes for 312 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in a 29-17 Denver win over the Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium. Now Siemian, who has also played for Minnesota, the New York Jets, New Orleans and Chicago, gets a chance to play behind Joe Burrow.
“It’s huge,” Siemian said of the opportunity to backup another great quarterback. “I think as a player in this league, you find out you want to be around good players and good teams and good coaches.”
Will he try to teach Burrow a thing or two?
“I don’t know about teach,” Siemian said. “I think Dan (Pitcher), Brian (Callahan) and Zac, they can handle that. I just have some different experiences that maybe some of these guys don’t have and hopefully I can help them out in that way.
“Just be the best teammate I can be. It’s pretty simple for me. That’s kind of how I operate. It’s how can I add value, how can I be the best player I can be and how can I help guys out as best I can. So it will be no different in the quarterback room.”
Bengals fans aren’t the only ones dying to find out what their 2023 schedule will look like. The players and coaches will tune in Thursday night at 8 p.m. ET to discover their travel plans for the season when the NFL releases its full slate of games for the upcoming season.
The biggest games figure to be the Chiefs in an AFC Championship rematch of the last two seasons, the 49ers in a matchup of the two championship game runner ups from 2022, the Bills in a rematch of the AFC Divisional game in the snow of Buffalo last January and the Jaguars in the second-ever meeting between Joe Burrow and Trevor Lawrence. That game will be in Jacksonville.
The players had some thoughts. Ted Karras would like to see the Bengals play the Super Bowl champion Chiefs in the annual NFL opener on Thursday, Sept. 7 that features the defending NFL champion on their home turf. The Bengals have never played in the official NFL season opener on a Thursday.
“It really doesn’t matter to me. I think that’d be a fun way to start the season and kind of establish ourselves in the conference early,” Karras said. “I think Week 1 in Arrowhead would be pretty fun.
“But I’m also interested to see if we go international. I know we have a lot of (similar) opponents that are have international games. So, make sure our passports are are up to date. But really excited to see the slate. The NFL has made it an annual show, which is really cool, with different landmarks, the draft, now we get the schedule release. Kind of the summer dead zone coming up, but really excited to see who we play and when.”
“Obviously, Kansas City and Buffalo are big games but the San Fran game is one I’m really looking forward to, just knowing how good they are, watching them on defense,” Hilton said.
Would Hilton like to see Kansas City on opening night?
“Absolutely,” Hilton said. “I’m pretty sure that’s the game everybody wants to see opening night.”
