Bengals’ first unofficial depth chart ahead of preseason Week 1 vs. Lions shows chaos, confusion, and confirmation for key rookie
The Cincinnati Bengals have unveiled their first official depth chart for their preseason Week 1 matchup against the Detroit Lions. There are a few things that need clarification.
The Cincinnati Bengals have unveiled their first official depth chart for their preseason Week 1 matchup against the Detroit Lions.
As always, the club’s official depth chart is not carefully composed and often has inaccuracies. Head coach Zac Taylor has downplayed the depth chart’s significance in the past for this exact reason.
Most of the depth chart is perfectly fine. Everyone knows who’s starting right now on both sides of the ball. It’s only right to focus in on the details beneath the top 22.
Chaos at slot receiver
Andrei Iosivas remains the starter in the slot between Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. The first name behind him, as expected, is Charlie Jones. What the deaf chart can’t accurately portray is the fact that Mitchell Tinsley and Colbie Young we both see the field before Jones in an actual game.
Tinsley has also been taking first team reps in the slot, particularly on run plays, and Young has answered the call time and time again when Burrow has targeted him. Both players are actively push pushing Iosivas for playing time right now.
Ultimately, for the visual simplicity of the depth char, Tinsley and Young they are listed as boundary guys whereas Jones is mainly a slot player. Ke’Shawn Williams and Dohnte Meyers being right on Jones’ tail is very accurate though.
Connor Lew already over Jacob Bayer
This is likely going to be accurate by the time the season begins, but I am surprised that rookie Connor Lew is already listed as the second string center over Jacob Bayer. Lew, who suffered a torn ACL back in October while he was still at Auburn, has only been practicing since the beginning of training camp. Bayer was taking second team reps throughout the majority of the offseason behind starter Ted Karras.
Cincinnati opted to not have Lew start on the Non-Football Injury list when camp began, and there have been no setbacks with his knee since he began practicing. This is great news for him getting very valuable reps during the preseason. Bayer will look to prove valuable enough to stay on the practice squad so long as Lew is healthy.
Clearing up cornerback confusion
We need to clear up some things at cornerback. DJ Ivey is firmly on the second team, but he is not a nickelback. He has been backing up Dax Hill on the boundary. While he has played in the slot before in certain situations, he is not Jalen Davis’ backup at that position. That role belongs to Ja’Sir Taylor, who is listed as DJ Turner II’s backup.
Swapping Ivey and Taylor is simple enough. Josh Newton will hope to swap himself with Ivy before the preseason ends. It really does feel like Newton is in the doghouse right now, and only a really impressive preseason will change that. Regardless, when he has been out recently with an injury, it’s been Ivey taking his reps.
