Early winners and losers at Training camp

[BFritz21]

(08-03-2022, 01:20 PM)Synric Wrote: If the Bengals run more of the Air-Raid like they did at the end of the 2021 season Hurst would end up with more targets on the season as a whole than Uzomah. 

People that say we shouldn’t target the tight end in order to create more passes to our receivers really don’t understand offensive strategy in football.

Being able to have a receiving tight end is one of the most dangerous weapons to have and really opens up the game for the rest of the offensive weapons.

A good receiving tight end keeps the safeties from shadowing over the top of the outside receivers because they’re too good for linebackers to try and cover one-on-one and often even too big for a third corner that comes in on third down.

They are also a lot of times a great safety valve for the quarterback when he gets under pressure.

Receiving tight ends are a great way to move the chains and sustain drives.

[Soonerpeace]

From The Athletic:

WR Kwamie Lassiter. The undrafted rookie out of Kansas continues to work his way into important reps and impress the coaching staff. With Tee Higgins working on the side in 11-on-11, Lassiter has been the first to step in for Mike Thomas in the rotation. He has shown nice speed and made several catches to create more opportunity for himself. Also, he has been second in line in the punt return drills, behind Trent Taylor. As special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons said of Lassiter and Pooka Williams Jr., there is no way they make the team without winning the punt return gig. Lassiter is squarely in the mix.

WR Ja’Marr Chase. If we are going to report when Chase struggles, as he did this time last year, we also need to report when he’s dominating every day of camp. It’s not a surprise, and it’s hard to imagine his stock soaring any higher, but Chase looks like he’s playing a different game. He’s pulling in a ball over the top nearly every practice, and it would be multiple every day if the throws were all on point. He has picked up right where he left off (beating Jalen Ramsey all over SoFi Stadium).

[XenoMorph]

(08-03-2022, 03:19 PM)Soonerpeace Wrote: From The Athletic:

WR Kwamie Lassiter. The undrafted rookie out of Kansas continues to work his way into important reps and impress the coaching staff. With Tee Higgins working on the side in 11-on-11, Lassiter has been the first to step in for Mike Thomas in the rotation. He has shown nice speed and made several catches to create more opportunity for himself. Also, he has been second in line in the punt return drills, behind Trent Taylor. As special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons said of Lassiter and Pooka Williams Jr., there is no way they make the team without winning the punt return gig. Lassiter is squarely in the mix.

WR Ja’Marr Chase. If we are going to report when Chase struggles, as he did this time last year, we also need to report when he’s dominating every day of camp. It’s not a surprise, and it’s hard to imagine his stock soaring any higher, but Chase looks like he’s playing a different game. He’s pulling in a ball over the top nearly every practice, and it would be multiple every day if the throws were all on point. He has picked up right where he left off (beating Jalen Ramsey all over SoFi Stadium).

I read that Apple is playing Well enough to be annoying the hell out of chase lol

[Sled21]

(08-03-2022, 03:34 PM)XenoMorph Wrote: I read that Apple is playing Well enough to be annoying the hell out of chase lol

Apple may very well bring it this year and make a lot of sportswriters eat their words. He's also ditched the social media stuff, so hopefully he's grown out of that.

[Frank Booth]

(08-03-2022, 04:04 PM)Sled21 Wrote: Apple may very well bring it this year and make a lot of sportswriters eat their words. He's also ditched the social media stuff, so hopefully he's grown out of that.

he was a fine cb2 last season. He gets hate due to his past play and social media nonsense

[XenoMorph]

(08-03-2022, 04:04 PM)Sled21 Wrote: Apple may very well bring it this year and make a lot of sportswriters eat their words. He's also ditched the social media stuff, so hopefully he's grown out of that.

dude just needed a home

[Soonerpeace]

I think that some here and in the national media don’t get how good we are on offense …. Talent wise. Burrow got sacked 70 times. Look what he did. Chase had one of the most explosive seasons in history for a rookie receiver. Higgins is coming into his own. Boyd is so physical at the point of the catch and a heck of a possession receiver. Hayden Hurst is very athletic for a TE. Then there’s Joe Mixon. Now throw them with a solid OL versus a crap one. I don’t get it.

[fredtoast]

(08-03-2022, 01:20 PM)Synric Wrote: If the Bengals run more of the Air-Raid like they did at the end of the 2021 season Hurst would end up with more targets on the season as a whole than Uzomah. 

Hurst may get more targets because we may not need the TE to block as much.

Also Hurst will probably have more yards and  receptions due to "inflation" when our passing game produces more completions and yards.

But switching Hurst for CJ will have zero effect on the way opposing defenses play against us. And we are not going to change our offense to get more targets for Hurst over any of our top 3 WEs.

[*pally*]

(08-03-2022, 03:19 PM)Soonerpeace Wrote: From The Athletic:

WR Kwamie Lassiter. The undrafted rookie out of Kansas continues to work his way into important reps and impress the coaching staff. With Tee Higgins working on the side in 11-on-11, Lassiter has been the first to step in for Mike Thomas in the rotation. He has shown nice speed and made several catches to create more opportunity for himself. Also, he has been second in line in the punt return drills, behind Trent Taylor. As special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons said of Lassiter and Pooka Williams Jr., there is no way they make the team without winning the punt return gig. Lassiter is squarely in the mix.

WR Ja’Marr Chase. If we are going to report when Chase struggles, as he did this time last year, we also need to report when he’s dominating every day of camp. It’s not a surprise, and it’s hard to imagine his stock soaring any higher, but Chase looks like he’s playing a different game. He’s pulling in a ball over the top nearly every practice, and it would be multiple every day if the throws were all on point. He has picked up right where he left off (beating Jalen Ramsey all over SoFi Stadium).

Dehner also mentioned 
WR Kendric Pryor. The undrafted rookie out of Wisconsin has caught the eye of the coaching staff. He has made multiple tough catches and shown up a few times a day, making you look down at the roster to double-check who is wearing No. 19. There’s a long way to go, but it’s a solid foundation for an impressive athlete who had 406 yards receiving and three touchdowns last year for the Badgers.

He could be a PS target

Rookies Tycen Anderson and Jeffrey Gunter were also singled out for praise.  It looks like the overall rookie class is working hard to earn their stripes

[NUGDUKWE]

(08-03-2022, 05:42 PM)pally Wrote: Dehner also mentioned 
WR Kendric Pryor. The undrafted rookie out of Wisconsin has caught the eye of the coaching staff. He has made multiple tough catches and shown up a few times a day, making you look down at the roster to double-check who is wearing No. 19. There’s a long way to go, but it’s a solid foundation for an impressive athlete who had 406 yards receiving and three touchdowns last year for the Badgers.

He could be a PS target

Rookies Tycen Anderson and Jeffrey Gunter were also singled out for praise.  It looks like the overall rookie class is working hard to earn their stripes

Yeah I was gonna mention Kendric Pryor as Ben Baby had mentioned him several times looking good in camp. I haven't really heard that anywhere else and will be curious to get a look at him in the preseason. 
Also glad to see Chase is picking up right where he left off. Need to get Burrow back out there so we can get a really good feel for the offense and the defense. 

[Soonerpeace]

(08-03-2022, 05:42 PM)pally Wrote: Dehner also mentioned 
WR Kendric Pryor. The undrafted rookie out of Wisconsin has caught the eye of the coaching staff. He has made multiple tough catches and shown up a few times a day, making you look down at the roster to double-check who is wearing No. 19. There’s a long way to go, but it’s a solid foundation for an impressive athlete who had 406 yards receiving and three touchdowns last year for the Badgers.

He could be a PS target

Rookies Tycen Anderson and Jeffrey Gunter were also singled out for praise.  It looks like the overall rookie class is working hard to earn their stripes

Ha ha I thought I was pushing the limit on sharing paid content lol

[*SHRacerX*]

(08-02-2022, 10:14 AM)bengalfan74 Wrote: https://bengalswire.usatoday.com/lists/cincinnati-bengals-training-camp-early-winners-losers-2

I know, I know it's TC hype. We've had our share of that back through the years. But I'm hoping and praying the Carman reports aren't just hype.

Also really glad Hurst is making an impression. And CTB may well displace Apple before this season is over it seems ?

Interesting that they praised CTB, as he got roasted quite a few times by the second string receivers the other day.  Reporters were calling it a "rookie day", which he is going to have, but he sure didn't stand out in a good way.  

[*SHRacerX*]

(08-02-2022, 11:09 AM)bengalfan74 Wrote: Improvise, overcome, and adapt Fred. The offense may well change a bit.

When we talked about other teams mimicking the defense of the Broncos, one way to poke holes in a cover 2 is a TE that can get down the seam.  I believe Wilcox has a nagging injury, and I think Thad Moss might get some love in the preseason.  

[*SHRacerX*]

(08-02-2022, 11:10 AM)bengalfan74 Wrote: Sweet

I'm not saying our defense is gonna be top notch. But even if they're just decent all year it's gonna be hard to beat this team with the O we should have.

This seems to be a common sentiment around here as everyone is in love with the offense (and I get why), but it was the defense that played so tough in the playoffs and made that improbable run.  I think, like the offense, it just took a bit to get the team to gel and pick up the schemes.  

When I think about how much was asked of Hendrickson and Hubbard, I get excited thinking about guys like Ossai rotating in fresh.  Ditto the new pieces in the secondary.  Got a lot faster with depth back there.  

Reader is a beast on the line. 

Lastly there is Wilson, who played downright impressive in the playoffs despite battling through an injury.  He is my dark horse Pro Bowler this year.  

If just one extra guy on defense steps up like Carter or Kareem, the defense could be one of the best.  Lost only Ogunjobi and have BJ Hill in his place.  

[*SHRacerX*]

(08-02-2022, 04:50 PM)Sled21 Wrote: Just going by film I see. Hurst looks way faster than CJ. Maybe it's an illusion.

CJ had quite a bit more length, and is a long strider, but it is being described as Hurst is faster in and out of breaks.  Quicker, perhaps, not overall faster.  He really turned some heads.  CJ was very inexperienced coming out of college and the Bengals drafted him on athleticism, but Hurst was a baseball player first, who turned back to football and had some gaudy receiving stats.  

I don't think he (Hurst) is a massive upgrade, but I think he will provide a nice security blanket for Burrow as the 4th best cover guy on any team won't likely be able to stick with him.  Especially given Joe Burrow's anticipation.  

I wanted to add a little douchey shot at CJ that he "didn't work hard in practice" and set it a flame on twitter just to fire back about how he said the Bengals won't be able to keep Burrow....but I held back.   I must be growing. 

[*pally*]

(08-04-2022, 08:31 AM)SHRacerX Wrote: When we talked about other teams mimicking the defense of the Broncos, one way to poke holes in a cover 2 is a TE that can get down the seam.  I believe Wilcox has a nagging injury, and I think Thad Moss might get some love in the preseason.  

Thad was out of practice on Tuesday with presumably some sort of tweak or injury

[*bengalfan74*]

(08-04-2022, 08:38 AM)SHRacerX Wrote: This seems to be a common sentiment around here as everyone is in love with the offense (and I get why), but it was the defense that played so tough in the playoffs and made that improbable run.  I think, like the offense, it just took a bit to get the team to gel and pick up the schemes.  

When I think about how much was asked of Hendrickson and Hubbard, I get excited thinking about guys like Ossai rotating in fresh.  Ditto the new pieces in the secondary.  Got a lot faster with depth back there.  

Reader is a beast on the line. 

Lastly there is Wilson, who played downright impressive in the playoffs despite battling through an injury.  He is my dark horse Pro Bowler this year.  

If just one extra guy on defense steps up like Carter or Kareem, the defense could be one of the best.  Lost only Ogunjobi and have BJ Hill in his place.  

Oh yes, I'm not saying the D will be trash. Just pointing out that they probably don't have to be great. I feel we can finish ranked top half of the league, perhaps bottom of the top 10 ? And any improvement we have on D will just make our offense that much better.

[*bengalfan74*]

(08-04-2022, 08:44 AM)SHRacerX Wrote: CJ had quite a bit more length, and is a long strider, but it is being described as Hurst is faster in and out of breaks.  Quicker, perhaps, not overall faster.  He really turned some heads.  CJ was very inexperienced coming out of college and the Bengals drafted him on athleticism, but Hurst was a baseball player first, who turned back to football and had some gaudy receiving stats.  

I don't think he (Hurst) is a massive upgrade, but I think he will provide a nice security blanket for Burrow as the 4th best cover guy on any team won't likely be able to stick with him.  Especially given Joe Burrow's anticipation.  

I wanted to add a little douchey shot at CJ that he "didn't work hard in practice" and set it a flame on twitter just to fire back about how he said the Bengals won't be able to keep Burrow....but I held back.   I must be growing. 

I don't either. I believe Hurst has suffered from ending up behind two great TE's and his stats have suffered accordingly. But I'm not trying to paint him as the next Gronk.

But I do think he can be sneaky good with the Tremendous Trio and Mixon getting most of the attention.

[XenoMorph]

(08-04-2022, 09:43 AM)bengalfan74 Wrote: I don't either. I believe Hurst has suffered from ending up behind two great TE's and his stats have suffered accordingly. But I'm not trying to paint him as the next Gronk.

But I do think he can be sneaky good with the Tremendous Trio and Mixon getting most of the attention.

With Mixon and the WR Trio he doesn't have to be Great... Just serviceable

[dr tarzan]

(08-03-2022, 10:15 AM)kalibengal Wrote: always been a fan of ADG, he imptesses me when on field more often then not and he can cover backs and TEs if needed.
I think he is primed for a  big yr if he stays healthy. ..... And lets not forget about Bailey....he has some skills too

boy,  to think just 2 yrs ago our LB group was abysmal.   Josh Bynes being the best of it.    The Bengals haven't had a deep and capable LB crew since Spikes Foley and Simmons.
Even the backups played at least average to above avg.   Baily, Bachie are better than I EVER though they would be.  Heck even a nobody like Clay Johnston played large in the Tennessee playoff game.   It is a genuine strength of the Bengals D unit.