Bengals’ interim plan without starting safety Geno Stone centers around career backup who shined on this stage before
Next man up mentality for Cincinnati’s secondary.
The Cincinnati Bengals have a couple days to officially decide who won’t play in Monday night’s preseason game against the Washington Commanders, but free safety Geno Stone can safely be added to the inactive list now.
Stone suffered a hamstring injury on the first drive of Cincinnati’s preseason-opener last week and is currently week-to-week. The goal is to get him ready for the regular season instead of getting him more snaps this month.
In the interim, the Bengals are looking for a short-term replacement on their roster, and the next man up is a logical choice.
Per Bengals.com’s Geoff Hobson, fourth-year safety Tycen Anderson is the likely starter for Stone in Washington alongside Jordan Battle. Behind them will be Daijahn Anthony and PJ Jules, who has been promoted to second-string to account for Anderson moving up to the starting unit.
“Tycen Anderson figures to get the start in place of Stone opposite Jordan Battle at safety. Then Jules and roster incumbent Daijahn Anthony are expected to team up with the Twos.” — Bengals.com’s Geoff Hobson
Anderson, a fifth-round pick from the 2022 NFL Draft, has played 332 career snaps in the preseason. His greatest highlight was a pick-six back in 2023, his first game back from a hamstring injury that ended his rookie season before it began.
Anderson would later suffer a torn ACL during the 2023 regular season, but he would return to play the entire 2024 campaign. He finished first on the team in special teams tackles (11) and second in special teams snaps (345).
Playing safety has been something Anderson’s only truly experienced in August. He’s logged a grand total of one snap in his regular season career on defense when he appeared in last year’s Week 4 victory over the Carolina Panthers.
If he wants to add to that number this year should Stone miss actual time, playing a quality quarter or two against the Commanders would go a long way. Cincinnati’s options outside of him are limited, but an external signing could become necessary if Stone misses more time than expected and Anderson doesn’t inspire enough confidence.
Monday night now becomes one of the most important evenings of Anderson’s career.
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