Suddenly, Bengals training camp on Sunday rolls into a game week with head coach Zac Taylor not only trying to cut down his roster but getting it ready for Saturday's 7 p.m. preseason opener against Tampa Bay at Paycor Stadium.
A few rambling vignettes stick in the mind after watching the first eight practices of 2024:
Smiling and sweaty Joe Burrow coming off the field after Friday's practice.
You forget.
We had just been watching something we haven't seen very often. A Burrow training camp practice. In five summers, you can still count them on your hands.
As good as he's been (and, please remember short-sighted-click-baiters, he's been among the best), he's done it without the ability to tweak, refine, or adjust through a long hot August talking it all through with his receivers and forensic studies with his coaches.
The day before, a scribe had asked Burrow about his long ball. He hadn't thrown it very much and when he did, there hadn't been consistent completions. And he admitted it wasn't where he wanted it to be.
Then on Friday, Aug. 2, his seventh day of work, he launched those two Rocket Man completions and the scribe caught his eye coming off the field.
"I guess the long ball is OK," the scribe told him.
No words. Just a big smile. Another day of summer grinding. And after not having any, the smile tells you the Rocket Man is not taking it for granted …
Vonn Bell on his way to the shower running into rookie cornerback Josh Newton.
Everyone from Zac Taylor to the equipment guys will tell you what a positive impact it is having Bell back at safety, roaming the middle with his 122 NFL games, most on the defense. His presence just gives you the sense the big passes that denied the Bengals a third straight post-season appearance have gone to die. Or at least shelter in place.
On Friday, he watched Burrow toast Newton in a scramble drill with one of those deep balls and he wanted to tell Newton something before he put his helmet down.
"When you disguise against a good quarterback, you can't give up your responsibility," says Bell, repeating what he offered Newton. "When you've got your back turned to him, he'll throw it every time. I kind of reminded him before the snap. 'Yo, you've got to get there.' He'll learn." …
Alex Cappa, the Bengals' estimable right guard, knocking heads with very large third-round pick Mckinnley Jackson in one-on-ones. While center Ted Karras and left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. have emerged as the offensive line spokesmen, Cappa's quiet affability and experience in his three seasons here have been huge in breaking in young guys like left guard Cordell Volson and current camp rage Amarius Mims, the rookie right tackle.
Cappa is a very strong man. So is Jackson. Cappa got him the first rep. The second rep, Jackson rocked him getting under his pads and drove him back, something you rarely see happen to Cappa.
They like what they've seen from Jackson so far and they liked that no doubt, but Cappa is going to be back. To be continued …
Kicker Evan McPherson, flipping the ball to himself and spending time pleasantly with everyone from three-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase to camp visitors before turning serial killer and drilling all his field goals to end practice.
Nothing fazes this guy. His people are in negotiations for a contract extension, he's had three different holders in camp, and it is still all down the middle. You get the sense he could kick a field goal with his infant daughter Merritt taking the snap from Cal Adomitis.
"He's a great weapon. I have a ton of confidence in him. Our team has a lot of confidence in him," said Taylor, who has wheeled him out to attempt more 50-yarders than anybody last year. "He's come through clutch for us in really big moments. You've seen what the variety of kicks we've attempted with them that speaks to the confidence." …
Mike Hilton, Vonn Bell's co-chair in the secondary with 107 NFL games of his own, slyly getting in position to knock away a pass from tight end Mike Gesicki in the end zone in seven-on-seven.
Great match of vets. The NFL's top slot cornerback in the 2020s vs. a savvy, big tight end with three seasons of at least 50 catches. Hilton gives nine inches to the 6-6 Gesicki, but you win a lot of reps in the NFL with more than size.
This is why the day he reported, the rookie Newton said he was going to plant himself next to vets like Hilton. Ja'Marr Chase advised his lifelong pal, college free agent cornerback Lance Robinson, to do everything Hilton does.
Then, there's another rookie latching on to Hilton, seventh-round safety Daijahn Anthony from the alma mater Ole Miss who has that Hilton versatility and knack for the ball. Anthony has two picks in this camp, one of Burrow, and on Friday he was running with the Ones in a pass package.
Hilton doesn't mind looking like the pied piper with all these kids behind him.
"Vonn and I, we're the oldest guys in the room. We've been through a lot of the ups and the downs and we're just trying to guide these guys to have a long, productive career," says Hilton, not surprised at the rookie impact. "As a rookie, you want to make an impression. It's good to see them growing already. It's a long season. We're definitely going to need them." …
People around camp are shaking their heads at the receiver depth.
With Chase and Tee Higgins being managed this camp and not practicing Friday, and third-round pick Jermaine Burton out with a tweaked ankle that's not expected to amount to much, the passing game still clicked with practice squad guys like Shed Jackson, Kendric Pryor, and Kwamie Lassiter making plays.
So you've got Chase, Higgins, Burton, and one of the stars of camp, Andrei Iosivas. You've got Charlie Jones, coming on lately and is the incumbent punt returner with virtually no competition. Trenton Irwin is a Burrow go-to-guy. That's six.
One thing this camp has shown. Even with Tyler Boyd gone, it's still has to be at least one of the deepest rooms in the league …
Karras, taking the one-millionth question about Mims, a guy that seems to be on the verge of making the quickest, lock-cinch first-round impact since Burrow himself.
Relayed Mims' quote about the best thing about his locker being in between Orlando Brown and Volson and not the nine fans, Karras nodded his head and turned to Cappa and said, "That's a great answer, isn't it?"
"Sure is," Cappa said.
Karras not only loves Mims' maturity, but what is behind the starters.
"I think since I've been here it's the best depth we've had," said Karras, who arrived with Cappa in 2022 …
One camp insider put Mims at the top of his list for what he has liked so far. The second is vet running back Zack Moss.
Moss, added via free agency in the transition to committee from Joe Mixon, has showed up as advertised: "Quick. Really good vision. Hits the hole decisively." …
