Latest news with #CamTaylorBritt
Washington Post
02-08-2025
- Sport
- Washington Post
Bengals' cornerback competition heats up with multiple players vying for first-team spots
CINCINNATI — At Bengals training camp, no position has had more players rotating through with the first-team unit than the cornerback spot. 'I wouldn't read anything these first couple of weeks into who's lining up with who, because oftentimes it's so fluid with us at 9:52 a.m. before a 10 o'clock practice,' coach Zac Taylor said. 'That's just part of training camp. There's plenty of time for a bunch of these battles to shake out.' Cam Taylor-Britt, Dax Hill and DJ Turner were the starters for most of last season. With Taylor-Britt being managed a bit for precautionary reasons, Hill coming back from a torn ACL and Turner coming off of a subpar 2024 season, first-team snaps have been up for grabs. Josh Newton is making a strong push for the starting slot cornerback spot, and DJ Ivey has impressed while getting regular reps with the first-team defense. Taylor-Britt has been a starter for the Bengals since the middle of the 2022 season. While 2024 was the worst season of his career, he's simplifying his approach entering 2025 and has a fresh start with new defensive coordinator Al Golden. Taylor-Britt went back to the drawing board during the offseason. He watched all of his bad plays. 'You can see my eyes,' Taylor-Britt said. 'You can see why the ball was caught. It was bad eyes. It wasn't technique or anything. I have to slow down at the line and be myself. Stay confident. Stay the same guy no matter what's going on.' Hill moved from safety to cornerback entering the 2024 season, and he immediately impressed at his new position. But the former first-round pick tore his ACL in Week 5. This year, he's a candidate to start at outside cornerback or in the slot, and he's the Bengals' most versatile defensive back. 'It's good for everyone to know different spots,' Hill said. 'At corner, it's a lot of mental. Knowing your matchup. Knowing the offense, that's the biggest thing at corner. Week-to-week at corner, there's a different mindset you have to go into the game with.' Turner had been struggling in camp, running with the second-team defense and regularly allowing receptions until last Thursday. Then during that practice, he astoundingly recorded five pass breakups, including highlight plays against Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Turner has always shown great athleticism and the ability to track receivers down the field. The next step for him is making more plays on the ball when quarterbacks challenge him down the field. 'It's just football,' Turner said. 'There are big names here. Joe Burrow. Ja'Marr. Trey. Big names. You have to look at it as normal people and just play football. You're here for a reason, too. It's just the mental aspect of going against people you watched growing up.' Newton, the Bengals' fifth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, made six starts last year after Turner's season-ending shoulder injury. His intensity, tackling ability and physicality in coverage have really been on display during a very strong training camp for him. He's consistently running with the first-team defense. 'We have the biggest question mark (in the secondary),' Newton said. 'It's an honor to have that question mark because we have a pencil ready to answer it.' Ivey was one of the best tight end stoppers in the NFL last season and regularly played on third downs. He has great size for the cornerback position and has been getting plenty of opportunities to develop as a true outside cornerback with the first-team defense. 'I think growth is a good word (for him),' Taylor said. 'DJ continues to ascend in a lot of areas on defense and special teams, and I'm excited to watch him continue to compete in training camp. He's a guy who is a joy to be around. I like what he's about.' ___ AP NFL:
Yahoo
02-08-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bengals' cornerback competition heats up with multiple players vying for first-team spots
CINCINNATI (AP) — At Bengals training camp, no position has had more players rotating through with the first-team unit than the cornerback spot. 'I wouldn't read anything these first couple of weeks into who's lining up with who, because oftentimes it's so fluid with us at 9:52 a.m. before a 10 o'clock practice,' coach Zac Taylor said. 'That's just part of training camp. There's plenty of time for a bunch of these battles to shake out.' Cam Taylor-Britt, Dax Hill and DJ Turner were the starters for most of last season. With Taylor-Britt being managed a bit for precautionary reasons, Hill coming back from a torn ACL and Turner coming off of a subpar 2024 season, first-team snaps have been up for grabs. Josh Newton is making a strong push for the starting slot cornerback spot, and DJ Ivey has impressed while getting regular reps with the first-team defense. Taylor-Britt has been a starter for the Bengals since the middle of the 2022 season. While 2024 was the worst season of his career, he's simplifying his approach entering 2025 and has a fresh start with new defensive coordinator Al Golden. Taylor-Britt went back to the drawing board during the offseason. He watched all of his bad plays. 'You can see my eyes,' Taylor-Britt said. 'You can see why the ball was caught. It was bad eyes. It wasn't technique or anything. I have to slow down at the line and be myself. Stay confident. Stay the same guy no matter what's going on.' Hill moved from safety to cornerback entering the 2024 season, and he immediately impressed at his new position. But the former first-round pick tore his ACL in Week 5. This year, he's a candidate to start at outside cornerback or in the slot, and he's the Bengals' most versatile defensive back. 'It's good for everyone to know different spots,' Hill said. 'At corner, it's a lot of mental. Knowing your matchup. Knowing the offense, that's the biggest thing at corner. Week-to-week at corner, there's a different mindset you have to go into the game with.' Turner had been struggling in camp, running with the second-team defense and regularly allowing receptions until last Thursday. Then during that practice, he astoundingly recorded five pass breakups, including highlight plays against Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Turner has always shown great athleticism and the ability to track receivers down the field. The next step for him is making more plays on the ball when quarterbacks challenge him down the field. 'It's just football,' Turner said. 'There are big names here. Joe Burrow. Ja'Marr. Trey. Big names. You have to look at it as normal people and just play football. You're here for a reason, too. It's just the mental aspect of going against people you watched growing up.' Newton, the Bengals' fifth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, made six starts last year after Turner's season-ending shoulder injury. His intensity, tackling ability and physicality in coverage have really been on display during a very strong training camp for him. He's consistently running with the first-team defense. 'We have the biggest question mark (in the secondary),' Newton said. 'It's an honor to have that question mark because we have a pencil ready to answer it.' Ivey was one of the best tight end stoppers in the NFL last season and regularly played on third downs. He has great size for the cornerback position and has been getting plenty of opportunities to develop as a true outside cornerback with the first-team defense. 'I think growth is a good word (for him),' Taylor said. 'DJ continues to ascend in a lot of areas on defense and special teams, and I'm excited to watch him continue to compete in training camp. He's a guy who is a joy to be around. I like what he's about.' ___ AP NFL:
Associated Press
02-08-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
Bengals' cornerback competition heats up with multiple players vying for first-team spots
CINCINNATI (AP) — At Bengals training camp, no position has had more players rotating through with the first-team unit than the cornerback spot. 'I wouldn't read anything these first couple of weeks into who's lining up with who, because oftentimes it's so fluid with us at 9:52 a.m. before a 10 o'clock practice,' coach Zac Taylor said. 'That's just part of training camp. There's plenty of time for a bunch of these battles to shake out.' Cam Taylor-Britt, Dax Hill and DJ Turner were the starters for most of last season. With Taylor-Britt being managed a bit for precautionary reasons, Hill coming back from a torn ACL and Turner coming off of a subpar 2024 season, first-team snaps have been up for grabs. Josh Newton is making a strong push for the starting slot cornerback spot, and DJ Ivey has impressed while getting regular reps with the first-team defense. Taylor-Britt has been a starter for the Bengals since the middle of the 2022 season. While 2024 was the worst season of his career, he's simplifying his approach entering 2025 and has a fresh start with new defensive coordinator Al Golden. Taylor-Britt went back to the drawing board during the offseason. He watched all of his bad plays. 'You can see my eyes,' Taylor-Britt said. 'You can see why the ball was caught. It was bad eyes. It wasn't technique or anything. I have to slow down at the line and be myself. Stay confident. Stay the same guy no matter what's going on.' Hill moved from safety to cornerback entering the 2024 season, and he immediately impressed at his new position. But the former first-round pick tore his ACL in Week 5. This year, he's a candidate to start at outside cornerback or in the slot, and he's the Bengals' most versatile defensive back. 'It's good for everyone to know different spots,' Hill said. 'At corner, it's a lot of mental. Knowing your matchup. Knowing the offense, that's the biggest thing at corner. Week-to-week at corner, there's a different mindset you have to go into the game with.' Turner had been struggling in camp, running with the second-team defense and regularly allowing receptions until last Thursday. Then during that practice, he astoundingly recorded five pass breakups, including highlight plays against Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Turner has always shown great athleticism and the ability to track receivers down the field. The next step for him is making more plays on the ball when quarterbacks challenge him down the field. 'It's just football,' Turner said. 'There are big names here. Joe Burrow. Ja'Marr. Trey. Big names. You have to look at it as normal people and just play football. You're here for a reason, too. It's just the mental aspect of going against people you watched growing up.' Newton, the Bengals' fifth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, made six starts last year after Turner's season-ending shoulder injury. His intensity, tackling ability and physicality in coverage have really been on display during a very strong training camp for him. He's consistently running with the first-team defense. 'We have the biggest question mark (in the secondary),' Newton said. 'It's an honor to have that question mark because we have a pencil ready to answer it.' Ivey was one of the best tight end stoppers in the NFL last season and regularly played on third downs. He has great size for the cornerback position and has been getting plenty of opportunities to develop as a true outside cornerback with the first-team defense. 'I think growth is a good word (for him),' Taylor said. 'DJ continues to ascend in a lot of areas on defense and special teams, and I'm excited to watch him continue to compete in training camp. He's a guy who is a joy to be around. I like what he's about.' ___ AP NFL:
Yahoo
24-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Top Analyst Reveals Mind-Blowing Steelers Stat from 2024 Season
Warren Sharp of Sharp Football dropped a mind-blowing stat on Monday afternoon, and it's not a good reflection of the Pittsburgh Steelers offense in 2024. 'This is REALLY hard to do, sounds almost impossible but … on the Steelers *own* opening drives of games last year, their opponents scored more TDs than the Steelers did,' Sharp wrote. 'Read that again, 0 TDs scored = Steelers offense (17 games) 1 TD allowed = Steelers QB threw pick-6. Yikes.' Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt picked off Russell Wilson for a 51-yard touchdown in the Week 13 game. Wilson bounced back, finishing with 414 yards passing and three touchdowns in a Steelers' 44-38 shootout win. Ironically, that was the best performance by the Steelers all year. Advertisement The Steelers allowed the most points (112) in the first quarter in 2024, according to Sharp. Despite struggling in the first quarter, the Steelers finished the season eighth in points allowed (20.4). To say the least, slow starts on both sides of the ball were a major issue for the Steelers last season. That's something that will need to be corrected this upcoming season. The Steelers ranked dead last in first quarter point differential last season (-3.9), according to Matt Williamson of Along with not scoring an opening drive touchdown in 2025, the Steelers went three-and-out nine times. They finished the regular season with a streak of six straight games started in that manner. Advertisement The last time the Steelers posted a touchdown on their first drive was Dec. 23, 2023, a 34-11 home win over Jake Browning and the Bengals. Pittsburgh began the 2024 season by managing only six Chris Boswell field goals against the Atlanta Falcons. Pittsburgh's initial offensive series in that one last 10 plays, gaining all of 31 yards and concluding on a 57-yard Boswell boot. Boswell capped six of the Steelers' opening drives with a made field goal, including four straight against the Dallas Cowboys, Las Vegas Raiders, New York Jets and New York Giants. He missed another from 58 yards out in a 24-19 loss at Cleveland on Nov. 21. The aforementioned march against the Cowboys spanned 11 plays and stretched 52 yards. The one against the Giants was 10 plays and 57 yards, with the latter figure being the longest of any initial drive for the Steelers this campaign. Pittsburgh ate up 5 minutes, 48 seconds in their first matchup against the Browns, the longest in that respect. Advertisement Brendan Howe contributed reporting for this story. This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Top Analyst Reveals Mind-Blowing Steelers Stat from 2024 Season Related Headlines
New York Times
05-06-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Bengals OTAs: First-stringers setting competitive tone tops trends so far
One moment stood out at the Bengals' OTA session on Tuesday as much as any in the traditionally forgettable practices that occur this time of year. In the middle of a 7-on-7 competition between offensive and defensive starters, cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt found himself lined up against tight end Mike Gesicki in the slot during a third-down drill. When Gesicki cut toward the sideline and Joe Burrow unloaded a pass in his direction, Taylor-Britt made his move. Advertisement The fourth-year corner exploded toward the ball, leapt in the air, snagged it, flipped to land an elbow in bounds and held on for the interception. He immediately erupted and started talking trash in the direction of Burrow and the offense, while tossing the ball up toward the sky to amplify the disrespect. JUICE 🧃#WhoDey x @CamTaylorBritt_ — Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) June 3, 2025 Seemingly before the ball even landed, Burrow took the next snap, looked off the safety and unloaded a bomb to Ja'Marr Chase who was sprinting five yards past cornerback DJ Turner down the sideline for what would have been a touchdown. Call this the ultimate 'Take That' go ball. The drill wasn't even designed for deep passes. Chase nearly ran into the defensive line participating in a different drill down the sideline, not thinking any deep routes were coming their way. No, this wasn't scripted. That's what made Burrow's reminder all the more exciting. 'You want Sheisty to come out,' Taylor-Britt said afterward. Joe Burrow goes DEEP to Ja'Marr Chase during 7-on-7 drills — James Rapien (@JamesRapien) June 3, 2025 With all due respect, there hasn't been much of this level of competitiveness and tenacity this time of year in Cincinnati. The Bengals rarely break out good-on-good — in fact, they never do ones versus ones in 11-on-11 — but even when they have, these types of moments have been few and far between. There hasn't been a philosophy shift in the offseason program, necessarily. That will be coming when training camp rolls around. Yet, the urgency and competitive levels of the last two weeks featured a notable uptick from the light work of previous seasons. What does it all mean? Not necessarily a game-changer in the big picture, but the seriousness of the proceedings is encouraging, specifically on defense. Advertisement If there was a group you'd expect to stay relatively humble after what happened last year, it would be the Bengals' defensive backs. Each of the five starters during OTAs was benched at some point last year except for safety Geno Stone, who took a pay cut. Yet, credit to new defensive coordinator Al Golden, because the young grouping of Taylor-Britt, Turner, Josh Newton and Jordan Battle have all shown up at different moments and rarely have been shy expressing their excitement. Taylor-Britt had the loudest moment Tuesday, but Newton also had a pass breakup, as did Turner, who enjoyed a productive session last Tuesday. There's more press-man coverage and versatility in where they line up. Taylor-Britt's interception is a great example. He was locked up with Gesicki in the slot. The Bengals are looking for an answer there after moving on from Mike Hilton and Taylor-Britt is being tested as part of the equation. Dax Hill, who played well during his first stint at outside corner last year, is recovering well from ACL surgery and still looks to be used all over, but there's a clear lean into letting these corners all test the waters at different spots to add to the number of answers Golden has during the season. For now, in terms of the confidence emanating from the group, it's working. The two players who enjoyed the biggest leaps last year were running back Chase Brown and wide receiver Andrei Iosivas, both second-year, former Day 3 picks. Brown developed into a premier back in the league and a primary weapon for the offense and Iosivas put a stranglehold on the third receiver spot alongside Chase and Tee Higgins, in conjunction with TE/WR Gesicki. Well, there's no sign of slowing down. More than 45 minutes after practice ended on Tuesday, there they were, the two just then coming off the field long after most had showered and moved on with their day. These were the same reports given when they sought out receiver coach Drew Lieberman last offseason and experienced huge gains on the field. Despite more competition around them, they have only solidified themselves as central figures in the offensive game plan, with Iosivas' size and athleticism really starting to shine in his second year working as both an inside and outside receiver. OTA starting lineups aren't typically worth even mentioning, but I will regarding the positional free-for-all happening at both guard spots. Third-round pick Dylan Fairchild and free agent signee Lucas Patrick currently hold the starting spots. There will be many more important mileposts in this competition that also involves Cody Ford, Jaxson Kirkland, Cordell Volson, Jalen Rivers, and really any player over 300 pounds who proves capable of playing the position. Yet, the messaging at the league meetings following the signing of Patrick and post-draft after selecting Fairchild in the third round was that these are the early favorites. Advertisement Those words were backed up by the actions of running with the first team right now. The depth of the pass catchers has improved this year, as noted before with the ascension and return of Iosivas and Gesicki. What's lining up to be among the most entertaining battles of training camp will be the chase for the fifth receiver spot behind the top four. The primary contestants for the spot are Jermaine Burton, Charlie Jones and Isaiah Williams. There have been eyes opened around the progress of Williams, a 24-year-old out of Illinois who played six games for Cincinnati last season after being claimed off waivers from Detroit on Nov. 8. His quickness has shown up and he could find an impact as a slot receiver on offense. Whoever wins the role will also likely land as the starting kickoff returner. All three took reps at the position last season. Jones has a punt and kickoff return for a touchdown to his name. Burton showed flashes in his opportunity, as did Williams. Burton's journey will be as much off the field as on it as he aims to leave a disastrous rookie year behind him and regain trust inside the building. So far, so good on that, but there's a long way to go. Jones needs to prove he can stay healthy. There's a good chance all three will see extended playing time in the preseason to see who carves out this important niche on the two-deep. (Photo of Ja'Marr Chase making a deep reception at OTAs: Sam Greene / Imagn Images)
