In Good Hands: State of Bengals Very Encouraging Heading Into Training Camp

CINCINNATI — The Bengals had exactly the offseason they needed heading into a season in which the motto is: Finish the job.

When you step back the Bengals did precisely what was called for in terms of improving the offensive line with the signing of three veteran and accomplished offensive linemen who figure to all step in as starters on Frank Pollack’s glass-eating assembly line.

They replaced C.J. Uzomah with Hayden Hurst, a tight end and former first-round pick who is eager to prove everybody who doubted him in Baltimore and Atlanta wrong for giving up on him.

Yes, there is the Jessie Bates franchise tag/contract negotiating/offseason absence hanging over the team. But Joe Burrow put that absence in its perfect perspective on Tuesday.

The coaching staff is intact, with all three coordinators back to assist Zac Taylor and provide coaching, planning and strategic preparation.

Perhaps most importantly, the attitude is there. That was one of the biggest takeaways Tuesday in the final media availability with the team before it adjourns for five weeks and reconvenes in the final week of July for the start of training camp.

The Bengals have the look of a team that isn’t hoping to return to the Super Bowl. They expect it. The Bills and Chargers have reloaded. The Broncos have Russell Wilson. The Raiders have Davante Adams to go with Derek Carr. The Colts have Matt Ryan. The Chiefs still have Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.

The Ravens have Lamar Jackson back healthy, and the Browns have the Deshaun Watson experiment waiting in NFL discipline purgatory.

The Bengals? By the end of the week, they will have finished OTAs with the biggest drama revolving around whether their starting free safety signs a free agent tag or an extension by July 15, followed closely by whether 2021 second-rounder Jackson Carman can win the starting left guard spot in front of Burrow.

That’s not bad in this day and age. With that here are the final takeaways of the final week of offseason practice:

“It’s go time”:

Joe Burrow said it best when characterizing the attitude of the team this offseason. This is perhaps the strongest signal that the next five weeks aren’t so much about vacation as they are about zeroing in on the mission at hand.

“We are locked in now,” Burrow said. “It’s go time. We are a month and a couple weeks out from camp so I’m locked in. I think about football every day. This month leading up to camp, it’s more intense out there at practice, it will get a little more intense in the meeting rooms and my workouts and all of the above. It’s go time.”

Zac Taylor’s reaction?

“That’s a great message for our team. The time for vacation was in March and April,” Taylor said of Burrow’s message. “That doesn’t mean you can’t get away for a couple days but physically you need to come back and be in the best shape of your life when we hit training camp. So when your leadership is making those statements it trickles down to the entirety of the roster. If they want to keep up they got to get on that level. That’s what we want as a team. That’s where we want to get to and we just got to be prepared when the first day of training camp rolls around that we don’t skip a beat.”

Burrow Expects Bates Back “ready to go”:

Players like Burrow are waiting for the business side to work itself out and expect one of their key leaders back for camp in late July.

“Jessie is a big part of this team. You can put a price tag on what he does on the field, but I don’t think you can on what he does in the locker room,” Burrow told me. “He’s been a guy who’s kind of built what we’re doing here. He was one of the first. Jessie is exactly the kind of player I think you want to reward for the work that he’s done for the last four years through the ups and the downs.

“We weren’t very good for three years while he was here and then he’s been through it all. We’re hoping everything works in his favor. I know he’s working really hard right now in the weight room. He’s looking great. He’s going to be ready to go whenever he gets here. Business is business. He’s got to take care of what he’s got to take care of, but I know when it’s time to show up, he’ll be ready to go.”

How does Burrow characterize the leadership Bates brings to the locker room?

“It’s tough. He’s one of those guys I talk about being able to hang out with anybody on the team and sit down at any lunch table,” Burrow said. “He’s one of those guys. He can have a conversation with anybody on the team and make them feel welcome and I think those guys are invaluable to an organization and program that’s trying to achieve what we’re trying to achieve.”

Burrow said he and Bates are planning to hang out in Las Vegas in the coming weeks.

“I talk to Jessie all the time,” Burrow said. “We’ll be taking a trip here soon together, so I’m excited about that.”

Ossai, Cappa, Wilson, Higgins on track for camp:

The Bengals played it cautious with Joseph Ossai (knee, wrist), Alex Cappa (core), Logan Wilson (shoulder), Tee Higgins (shoulder) in the offseason, including OTAs. Zac Taylor said Tuesday that all four should be back in time for start of camp and ready to fully participate. Also, Tyler Shelvin, who had a procedure on his left wrist, should also be ready for camp. Linebacker Joe Bachie could be delayed because of his ACL tear later in the season.

Six-pack signed:

With Tuesday’s signing of Cordell Volson to his rookie deal, the Bengals have all six draft picks under agreement and ready to go for camp. All have been taking part in camp, except for Cam Taylor-Britt, who was excused Tuesday for a personal reason.

2-High adjustments:

Joe Burrow made a significant acknowledgement Tuesday that the offense can’t rely on big plays to convert third downs this season. They need to be better in converting short yardage when the defense is in a look where the Bengals can take advantage. This has been evident in some OTA looks where Burrow was throwing in the flat and seam to new tight end Hayden Hurst, who has the burst speed to convert small gainers into much bigger plays.

“We just gotta be more consistent, not rely on those big plays as much,” Burrow said. “Teams are gonna be playing 2-high (safeties) and making us check the ball down and all that, so we gotta be able to sustain drives and run the ball and take what the defense gives us, all the way up and down the field, and then take those opportunities when they present themselves.”

Burrow feels “normal again”:

Joe Burrow hit 20.8 mph in his post practice sprint Tuesday, indicating that his knees are in pretty great shape heading into camp, and that he likely won’t be wearing a brace, at least in practice.

“Almost. We’re getting there. Record since (2020 ACL) surgery, that’s for sure,” Burrow quipped. “I wouldn’t say hyped about it. It just feels good to feel normal again.

“Yeah, I feel great. That’s the plan moving forward. We’ll see gameday. Preseason games we’ll see how I’m feeling, might put it on, might not, we’ll see but I plan on practicing without it, and we’ll see how it feels.”

Burrow’s mental toughness and his game impact on 2022 Bengals:

When Joe Burrow speaks of toughness, he stresses the mental game the single uniqueness of his position.

“Whatever happens the play before, you get back up and do it again. As a quarterback, you’re not playing the same game as everybody else on the field,” Burrow said. “You’re back there and it’s more of a mental chess match than it is a physical toll on your body. So, when you get a chance to show your toughness, I think as a quarterback, you have to. And that’s popping up and not having bad body language if you get hit and popping back up, getting back in the huddle and doing it again.”

This is what makes Burrow not only a gifted quarterback but the kind of leader Zac Taylor and Brian Callahan envisioned leading the Bengals in their 18 minutes with him pre-draft in 2020. And it’s what owner Mike Brown saw and said there was no trade possible to keep the Bengals from drafting him No. 1 overall.

Not worried about next mega-deal:

It’s assumed that whenever the 2022 season ends, the Bengals and Joe Burrow’s representatives will enter serious discussions about a contract extension. Burrow made a joke about bringing his chef along on junkets like Vegas once he gets that new deal that could approach the Patrick Mahomes 10-year, $450 million range. Aaron Rodgers was signed for three years and $150 million while Deshaun Watson was inked for five years and $230 million. But Burrow said he’s not in the least worried about a new deal right now.

“I mean the market is just exploding,” Burrow admitted. “It’s crazy the number that these guys are putting up and I think it’s well deserved. All those guys are playing at the top of their game. They’re being paid accordingly. But I’m not worried about — I like to make jokes about it, but really, I haven’t thought about it much right now.”

Left guard competition:

Will Jackson Carman hold onto the starting left guard spot he was slotted into during OTAs and offseason practice? Time will tell, but the very early returns seem promising for the second-round pick out of Clemson in 2021 after he remade his body in the last several months.

The other note from Tuesday was the “Be Like Bruce Lee” directive of offensive line coach Frank Pollack, getting after his linemen to punch and recoil in their blocking techniques. Pollack’s intensity and coaching has been on full display during OTAs. Clearly, the urgency to improve technique and consistency is there.

“Certainly, there’s still completion,” Taylor said. “This is just the warmup to the competition. This is more getting our feet underneath us, getting back into the groups and the schemes and the language that we use. Once training camp hits and you actually put pads on, and we’re practicing against ourselves, we’re playing preseason games against opponents, we’re practicing against the Rams, that’s the time you can truly see the level of consistency that’s needed for guys to win starting jobs. I think there’s been great attention to detail right now with guys that are involved in competitions like that. But you have to see that consistency over the course of training camp leading up to that first game to really know where you’re at.

“I’ve been pleased with the focus of the entire group. We have a lot of new faces in there, over half probably are new to us. And that’s a credit to Frank and Derek (Frazier) keeping those guys focused and getting a lot out of them during these periods. Some people could view the OSP (Offseason practice) phases as pretty monotonous for O-line and D-line but I think Marion (Hobby) and Frank have done a great job squeezing every ounce of work out of minutes that we have on the field even though you’re not going 11-on-11 full speed against the defense. That can be tough for some coaches. Not our guys. They’ve done a great job getting those guys focused in and being able to improve just some techniques and communication and footwork. That’s really shown up from the entirety of the group, that consistency of everybody trying to perform at a certain level.”

Evan McPherson and his kicking buddies:

Aside from the left guard battle featuring Jackson Carman, another battle to watch in camp is whether long snapper Clark Harris and punter and holder Kevin Huber hold onto their jobs teaming with kicker Evan McPherson, fending off the challenge from rookie undrafted free agent Cal Adomitis and punter Drue Chrisman.

McPherson was 3-for-3 with each unit on field goals Tuesday. A week earlier in the media portion, McPherson was 3-for-3 with Harris and Huber and 2-for-3 with Adomitis and Chrisman.