Notes From Training Camp 2025

[Millhouse]

I personally am not a fan of starters playing this Thursday and not a fan of Burrow playing. Opening game is 4 weeks and 3 days after this one, so that's a long time in between, and I don't see the perceived reward being worth the risk this early on.

But third preseason game though, I hope to see at least one very good series out of the starters.

[WeezyBengal]

(Yesterday, 11:08 AM)Nicomo Cosca Wrote: Zac Taylor is 1-11 in the first 2 weeks of the season.

“stupid narrative”

You're missing the point, man. 

WHY is he 1-11? 

Surely it's not because the best player on the team is rarely healthy enough to be an impact player in those first couple of weeks. Right? 

This thing is pretty simple, people want to overcomplicate it. 

[3wt]

(Yesterday, 02:59 PM)Millhouse Wrote: I personally am not a fan of starters playing this Thursday and not a fan of Burrow playing. Opening game is 4 weeks and 3 days after this one, so that's a long time in between, and I don't see the perceived reward being worth the risk this early on.

But third preseason game though, I hope to see at least one very good series out of the starters.

That's what we did last year.  We just flat out were not ready to play football the first game.  Could have been for a number of reasons, but part of it was that Joe was just not used to play speed - nor was the offensive line.   I think more than a series in the last preseason game when they will be playing twos and threes is not good preparation.

[Soonerpeace]

(Yesterday, 02:59 PM)Millhouse Wrote: I personally am not a fan of starters playing this Thursday and not a fan of Burrow playing. Opening game is 4 weeks and 3 days after this one, so that's a long time in between, and I don't see the perceived reward being worth the risk this early on.

But third preseason game though, I hope to see at least one very good series out of the starters.

I’m not either. I’d imagine playing the first game gives time for recovery if minor injury for first game. I’d rather see it the last preseason game first quarter

[WeezyBengal]

(Yesterday, 01:03 PM)Nicomo Cosca Wrote: And even that game went to OT. Hell, if Cook had not fumbled Zac is probably 0-12 in the first two weeks of the season.

And if Tanner Hudson doesnt fumble week 1 last year he is 2-10. 

If Mcpherson doesnt miss the kick against the Stelers two years ago he is 3-9. 

We can do this all day, man. So I guess the slow starts are a combination of Burrow missing camp AND bad luck. Thanks for reminding me. 

[Nepa]

Those of us in favor of Burrow playing some in the preseason have a supporter in terms of Boomer Esiason:

'Former Bengals’ quarterback Boomer Esiason, feels Burrow has the abilities, however, he has to find the right feel, “He doesn’t have to play but like 20 to 30 to 40 plays, but he’s just got to get that feel of live football and not feel like the first time you’re out there like last year against the Patriots, he looked very uncomfortable in that game, and that’s a game that they should’ve put up 30 points in.” '

https://www.essentiallysports.com/nfl-active-news-bengals-joe-burrow-leaves-zac-taylor-scratching-head-as-bengals-hc-confirms-trey-hendricksons-effect-on-locker-room/

20 to 40 plays for Burrow and the offense in the preseason sounds about right to me. There are about 60 offensive plays a game (I think), so about 30 to 40 plays sounds about what Andy Reid plays the starters in preseason. He goes 1 or 2 series the first preseason game and half a game in the second. I could get behind that.

[Bengalitis]

Of course he will play, do you think MB would pay all that money for him to sit on the bench.. owww hellll noooooooooooooo!

[WeezyBengal]

(Yesterday, 02:14 PM)Nicomo Cosca Wrote: Not really. The defense had 14 missed tackles, gave 100+ yds to a mediocre RB like TLL said, and let NE control the clock. They also let Brissett run for several key first downs.

The defense was bad all last year. Missed tackles all last year. Got ran over all last year. Them "not being prepared because they didn't play in preseason games" had nothing to do with it. 

[Nicomo Cosca]

(Yesterday, 03:14 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: You're missing the point, man. 

WHY is he 1-11? 

Surely it's not because the best player on the team is rarely healthy enough to be an impact player in those first couple of weeks. Right? 

This thing is pretty simple, people want to overcomplicate it. 

If last season proved anything it’s that Burrow can literally play at an MVP level and it’s still not usually enough. Not when the defense is dogshit, the OL is dogshit, the kicker is dogshit, etc.

Hoping the slow starts will just go away solely because Burrow isn’t coming back from anything is not a plan. Thankfully after 7 years Zac has finally realized that. We’ll see if it actually pays off or not.

[Nicomo Cosca]

(Yesterday, 03:18 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: And if Tanner Hudson doesnt fumble week 1 last year he is 2-10. 

If Mcpherson doesnt miss the kick against the Stelers two years ago he is 3-9. 

We can do this all day, man. So I guess the slow starts are a combination of Burrow missing camp AND bad luck. Thanks for reminding me. 

Bad luck or poor preparation? Not only did Hudson fumble against NE, but so did Charlie Jones. Seems like an awful lot of “if this hadn’t happened, if that hadn’t happened.” It’s almost like it’s a pattern or something.

[Nicomo Cosca]

(Yesterday, 03:22 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: The defense was bad all last year. Missed tackles all last year. Got ran over all last year. Them "not being prepared because they didn't play in preseason games" had nothing to do with it. 

Being bad against guys like Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry is a whole lot different than being bad against Jacoby Brissett and Rhamondre Stevenson.

[Millhouse]

(Yesterday, 03:15 PM)3wt Wrote: That's what we did last year.  We just flat out were not ready to play football the first game.  Could have been for a number of reasons, but part of it was that Joe was just not used to play speed - nor was the offensive line.   I think more than a series in the last preseason game when they will be playing twos and threes is not good preparation.

Shouldn't the 3rd & current last preseason game be the one starters get most of the preseason game reps in though, with the bye week following? It doesn't make sense to sit that game out, knowing that there would be a 3 week layoff in between the 2nd preseason game and the season opener.

[Essex Johnson]

Glad starters are playing some Thursday, ZT is living up to what he said and many fans agree play starters in preseason.

https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/nfl/bengals/2025/08/05/joe-burrow-jamarr-chase-playing-time-in-preseason-for-vs-eagles/85523451007/

Who Dey

[Isaac Curtis: The Real #85]

(Yesterday, 03:34 PM)Millhouse Wrote: Shouldn't the 3rd & current last preseason game be the one starters get most of the preseason game reps in though, with the bye week following? It doesn't make sense to sit that game out, knowing that there would be a 3 week layoff in between the 2nd preseason game and the season opener.

What you say makes some sense from a preparation or don't be rusty standpoint. 

But I think the last game is also the last chance to evaluate the bottom of the roster. Game situations should be determinative over close calls. So the last preseason game is usually like 1 series (or less) for the starters & then an evaluation. 

And not justvon who makes the 53. But on who makes the PS. Could this guy develop into a player? If we get hit by injuries does this guy have an NFL skill? 

[*Nate (formerly eliminate08)*]

(Yesterday, 01:51 PM)Nepa Wrote: Well, I for one would not whine about starters playing, because I have been consistent on this point. On the other hand, Zac and Burrow and the WRs should be (and I expect will be) flexible. For example, Andy Reid actually planned to play Mahomes two series in the last year's 1st preseason game, but then changed his mind during the game, satisfied with how things went in that first series, and had him play only one series. Zac should see how it is going and not be locked into two series if conditions (leaky OL, Philly blitzing non-stop, rainy weather, etc.) merit changing the plan to play for two series. 

And Burrow, as I've already stated, should just throw the ball away or in the ground if some bruiser bursts through the OL. And Chase should go out of bounds or to the ground rather than take a hit. Not a soul in the world would blame either for protecting their bodies in a preseason game.  This is a time to get ready for the speed of the NFL game and get timing down when playing at NFL speed. As Reid has stated repeatedly, practice cannot replicate that. 

But injuries happen even in practices, as we see time and time again. We cannot bubble wrap the players until game 1 of the regular season.

Completely agree Nepa. The players know how to take care of themselves and in preseason the games are meaningless so no reason to
risk anything while they are out there. If things go well and we look polished then pull out the starters, adapt. Injuries as you say can 
happen in practice just as much as preseason. We have to start out faster this season so we don't HAVE to win games late to get into 
the Playoffs like last year.

(Yesterday, 02:05 PM)Nepa Wrote: The Patriots won 4 games all season, and the Bengals were their only victory in their first 7 games. As you note, the Bengals were not ready for that first game, against one of the worst teams in the NFL, and it cost the Bengals the playoffs. The Patriots were a lousy team, but they had played their starters in preseason and got the shocking upset.

Any team can beat any team any Sunday no question. But to lose to the Pats last year and come out asleep while doing it was inexcusable.

But the Pats played their starters in preseason like you said, so they were more prepared. We have to be prepared this season early.

(Yesterday, 02:31 PM)Luvnit2 Wrote: Nice article on Bengals website with Pitcher. Lots of good things, but like his take on the running game.

https://www.bengals.com/news/joe-burrow-dan-pitcher-primes-his-deepest-depth-chart-we-re-going-to-use-all-these-guys

GH: Chase Brown said everyone involved in the offseason run game tweaks did a good job. He calls some of it "Thick with double teams."

DP: I think every offseason, you just try to find little emphasis points and get better in areas that you know are going to be part of what you do. And then think critically. Take a hard look at, are there things that we want to discontinue? Are there new things that really do fit us that we need to re-emphasize? I do think we did a good job in that process. I think it's ongoing. I think it takes great communication from everybody. Players included. Hopefully, they believe in the plan. I think they do. That's showing in how they execute.

GH: I haven't seen many stretch runs. It's a downhill deal right?

DP: I think that's the core of it. It doesn't mean that we're not going to try to get the ball on the perimeter. We have a variety of ways to do that, and I think we've done that during training camp. But I've said this publicly several times that we understand what the engine of this offense and on this football team is. It's our quarterback, it's our playmakers, so it's our job as coaches and their jobs as players to make sure we can do all the complementary things that we're able to do based on our opponents' response to that.

Good stuff with Pitcher. I kind of like that we haven't been doing too many stretch runs. Those don't tend to work with us often especially 
with our slower backs. Chase Brown is the one RB we have that could be effective on outside stretches but the OL has to be blocking well.

(Yesterday, 02:45 PM)Isaac Curtis: The Real #85 Wrote: They could get hurt in practice, too, should we cancel that? Burrow hurt his leg in camp last year.

It is football, there is always risk. 

But we cannot afford to keep starting 0-2 every year. We have to be better prepared to hit the ground running. Plus, the coach knows his ass is grass if we miss the POs again. 

Totally worth the risk. The first game cannot be the first time the starters play more than one series. We have seen how that movie ends. Six times. No thank you. 

If someone gets hurt, then them's the breaks. But you have to do what is necessary to have the team ready on Day 1. 

Completely agree Ike. We need to be ready for the opener. No more of this looking asleep crap again.

[Millhouse]

(Yesterday, 03:52 PM)Isaac Curtis: The Real #85 Wrote: What you say makes some sense from a preparation or don't be rusty standpoint. 

But I think the last game is also the last chance to evaluate the bottom of the roster. Game situations should be determinative over close calls. So the last preseason game is usually like 1 series (or less) for the starters & then an evaluation. 

And not justvon who makes the 53. But on who makes the PS. Could this guy develop into a player? If we get hit by injuries does this guy have an NFL skill? 

That's kind of the thing with this setup of preseason games. The last game should be for as what you said, to see all the backups one last time for evaluations. But in doing so, that means there is a 3 week layoff for the starters. I don't know if any chemistry/momentum achieved (reward) can carry over for that long, or at least enough to warrant the risk of injury 3-4 weeks plus out.

[NotBigzo]

Injury and contract issues aside,

it's something all teams deal with. Us losing to New England at home cemented the pattern and clearly shows it's a systemic problem. Change is needed.

[NotBigzo]

(Yesterday, 01:03 PM)Nicomo Cosca Wrote: And even that game went to OT. Hell, if Cook had not fumbled Zac is probably 0-12 in the first two weeks of the season.

Cook didn't fumble. 

Refs threw us a bone there. Point still stands though.

[Soonerpeace]

Shemar Stewart has been WREAKING HAVOC on the Bengals offensive line.

During one-on-one pass rush scenarios, Stewart has reportedly been “ripping through” his competition with ease.

Stewart’s “sheer power” and twitch has reportedly caused considerable disruption during 11-on-11… pic.twitter.com/h9hBGrCJl2

— Rookie Watch (@RookieWatxh) August 4, 2025

[Soonerpeace]

How could Joe Burrow possibly have gotten BETTER at QB?!

Here's coach: @UpAndAdamsShow @Bengals pic.twitter.com/6PSyy5e4BK

— Kay Adams (@heykayadams) August 5, 2025