This should be a good addition to our DLO depth.  We never got a good look at him before he blew out his knee last training camp.  But they thought enough of him to offer him a 3 year UDFA contract

This leaves only DJ Ivey on the PUP list

DT Devonnsha Maxwell has passed a physical and is cleared to practice.

— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) August 12, 2024

I mean, this guy has done next to nothing his whole career here. Time to move on and give his spot to someone else.

In an ESPN article posted this morning, Dan Orlovsky ranks the QBs in the NFL by a variety of traits, making a top 10 for each. In those rankings, Burrow's rank is as follows:

Arm Strength: Unranked

Ball Placement: Number 1

Quote:There's a difference between accuracy and ball placement: Accuracy is the ability to throw the ball to your guy, while ball placement is keeping it away from the defender. An accurate quarterback gets the pass to a spot where his receiver can make the catch. A quarterback with strong ball placement gets the pass to a spot where only his receiver can make the catch. Trajectory, touch, anticipation and field vision all play a role.

Burrow is the best in the game here, but Tagovailoa is really close. I think Burrow stands out in true ball placement, while Tagovailoa might be the most accurate passer in the league. Both quarterbacks rank in the top five in completion percentage since their 2020 draft year -- Burrow is third (67.8%), while Tua is fifth (67.4%).

Quote:Who is a natural thrower? Who has the best footwork? Who moves well within the pocket and always plays in rhythm? It all factors into mechanics. When things are clean, I'm looking for a repetitive throwing motion. And when things aren't clean, I'm looking for the ability to make it work because of a strong base.

That's why Burrow leads the way -- he is always ready to throw and can smoothly repeat the motion rep after rep. Stroud has that same ability, and Goff is equally consistent when his pocket is clean.

Quote:A quarterback with strong pocket presence operates effectively in the pocket even when things are chaotic around him. Can he recognize and avoid pressure? Can he move efficiently and calmly under duress? When I built this top 10, I looked for those who were at their best when the situation was at its worst.

Mahomes is fantastic in this regard -- he feels the pressure, doesn't panic and moves around, all while keeping his eyes downfield. Burrow is right behind him, and I don't know that anyone is better than him in the league at working in a phone booth. Stroud has already impressed in that area, too, especially on money downs.

Quote:I put Mahomes, Prescott and Burrow on here mainly because of their scrambling ability, a category they all excel in (Mahomes was actually second in scramble attempts last season with 50).

Quote:Being able to make a play is central to QB success, and the best in the league excel at making off-schedule and off-platform throws. These second-reaction passes from different arm angles -- often on the move -- can be the difference between moving the sticks and a stalled drive. They require serious creativity at times. Mahomes -- the obvious No. 1 on the list -- is elite in this trait.

Consistently hitting the wrong holes.


I think Chase Brown is a 3rd down back 100%

He was picking a hole quick and exploding through it. Usually this is good but this is exactly what Mixon did


The only difference is Brown will likely get more yards in the open field

I’m starting to see why we view Zac Moss as the starter.

Paycor stadiums biggest hater here...

I'd like to apologize. Paycor is awesome.

I've trashed PBS, Paycor over the years...but man, do I absolutely adore it now. It's been a steady improvement, but last night I was walking around the stadium and the entire vibe is just night and day different from what it was five years ago.

From the sound system, the music they play, the food options, the concourses, the in game entertainment, the lighting, the enhanced concourses, etc. The place is just great.

I'm looking forward to even more enhancements with the renovations coming, but the place finally has character - it's just a really cool stadium these days.

I think it's fairly safe to assume that this room is a wrap barring injury. Chase, Higgins, Irwin, Yoshi, Jones, and Burton are all locks.

Tee, Irwin, and Yoshi all three had good catches tonight and Burton made TBs 2s and 3s look like kids. I have a feeling that he will be doing the same to some teams 1s real soon.

I will start with 2 vets. I am an optimist and was hoping Carman and Evans would show marked improvement. Sadly, Evans appears slow, and Carman spent the night get beat over and over again including the last play on 4th and 10.

I will be shocked if he is not cut.

As for positives, Higgins, Burrow, Irwin and the 1st team OL with Mims at RT was solid, albeit 1 drive, but looked good. The problem our running game push and opening holes was not there all night.

Our defense played a lot of vanilla coverage and seldom blitzed. Newton made a great play. Overall, I have concerns with our defense, but with no Hubbard and no Trey, not sure Rankins played or played much so 3 huge pieces so hard to tell.

On to next week of practice and next preseason game.

Forgot to mention Yoshi and Burton also looked good.

For the game tonight where is the closest, best place to park that takes card?

Each year (minus 2023) I do one of these before the season and then we review them periodically through the season. Answer the below questions and we'll see who was on and who was off. (Boy I really blew that Tre Waynes MVP prediction). Feel free to post answers now and you can change/update up until kickoff opening day.

IF (knock on wood) someone who can affect an answer gets injured before the season; I'll update the question(s).

Now for the survey:

1. (Over/Under) Joe Burrow 4500 yards/ 32 TDs

2. Which TE will have the 2nd most receiving yards?

3. Number of Games Trent Brown is in the starting lineup?

4. Defensive Player of the Year from the last 2 draft classes?

5. RB with the most total yards?

6. Duo with more INTs: CTB/Rookie CB or Dax/DJ

7. WR with the 3rd most receiving yards?

8. Game w/ biggest margin of victory?

9. Game w/ biggest margin of loss?

10. Most sacks: Ossai, Murphy, Rankins

11. More defensive snaps; Kris Jenkins/ McKinnley Jackson

12. Most valuable/productive Free Agent signing

13. DPOY

14. Olineman w/the highest PFF rating (Most have regular snaps)

15. What will be our last game of the year and against whom?

Paul Dehner in The Athletic provided some updates on the draft class

paywall link

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5690172/2024/08/09/bengals-rookie-report-preseason/

A+
Amarius Mims
   Mims’ first impression has been the story of camp and suddenly he’s gone from the inexperienced rookie to, perhaps, the safer option to start on opening day over Brown.

A
Daijhan Anthony
    One pick by the seventh-rounder and it happens to be the first of camp? Nice. A second interception, this the first of Burrow in camp? Even better. A third interception, this time falling off your assignment reading the quarterback in a passing lane? OK, we have a trend. Anthony might be a seventh-rounder out of Ole Miss, but he’s made a big impression in the early portion of camp. He’s versatile and has been rewarded with snaps at different positions and up in the rotation. His knack for finding the football has been hard to miss.

A-
Josh Newton
    His tenacity, physicality and stickiness in coverage are notable. Every day he makes a play or two. He’s certainly arrived playing at a level higher than the fifth-round slot he was selected out of TCU.  

B
Erick All
    What we have seen is notable. The athleticism and versatility show up.  His play grew the encouragement exponentially.

C+
Cedric Johnson
    He needs plenty of development for his impressive physical traits that originally drew the Bengals’ scouts to him. He’s shown speed to burn coming off the edge.  they’ve focused him on the right side, but any action he sees on the field this year would probably come on special teams

C
Kris Jenkins
    We have not seen the instant impact to this point. As always, in the trenches, the games will be a better judge, but he hasn’t produced a buzzy first three weeks. There’s plenty to like about his foundation of technique and power but he needs to show some progress in the coming weeks

Jermaine Burton
     Burton’s merely going through a standard process of figuring out the NFL. That’s kept him in a reserve role and slightly off the radar considering the overwhelming hype that followed him into this camp.

C-

Tanner Mclachlan
    There’s just not much to analyze with McLachlan. He missed OTAs with a core muscle injury and missed some time in camp working his way back.   He also hasn’t shown himself.  You’d like to take more notice of a player, but he’s blended in

Mike Lee
    He’s not cracked reps with the second team with Hill getting all the work when the twos take over.  you would have liked to see a touch more momentum for Lee in the rotations.

Incomplete
McKinley Jackson
    The injury will put him behind.  He’s been fine so far. There hasn’t been much to note about his time on the field. That can often be the case for 330-pound nose tackles, but he hasn’t been a terror and also hasn’t looked like a liability.