Maema Njongmeta came out faster than even Vontaze Burfict, the Bengals' most famous undrafted rookie linebacker, in Saturday's preseason opener.
He racked up 10 tackles against the Bucs, doubling what Burfict did in his debut a dozen years ago, and he's still in a roster joust for what looks to be the fifth and last linebacker spot.
But Njongmeta got to the front of the line quickly during his defense-leading 45 snaps against the Buccaneers to match his jersey number.
"The thing I appreciated is how he played with tempo. Fast," linebackers coach James Bettcher said. "He didn't let calls or anything bog him down or anything. He got into a stance, keyed his keys and went."
Njongmeta, who had 154 tackles in his last two seasons at Wisconsin, said he's had to play fast because that's all it's been since he arrived.
"(Saturday) wasn't much faster than practice," Njongmeta said. "When I first got to this organization, practice was fast. Practice was fast. OTAs were fast. They're not walking, they're jogging. I've seen myself grow in processing since I've been here. I watch the older guys, and they're leagues ahead of me. It's something to reach for."
Now it's getting really fast as he prepares for this week's trip back home to scrimmage his hometown Bears in a Thursday joint practice at Halas Hall before playing them in Saturday's preseason game (1 p.m.-Cincinnati's Channel 19) at Soldier Field.
"About 30," says Njongmeta of the crowd expected to make the trip from his suburban Chicago home of Buffalo Grove, Ill.
But ….
"It's just another day at the office."
Or, maybe more like the classroom. Yes, Bettcher said, the instinctive plays were impressive Saturday, but he insisted "instincts are borne out of preparation."
"We present a lot of information to these new guys at this level and he does a great job being engaged in meetings and doing work outside the meetings," Bettcher said. "He asks great questions and takes really good notes. That's why he's playing fast."
It's an interesting cross-section of talent behind the core four linebackers of Germaine Pratt, Logan Wilson, Akeem Davis-Gaither and Joe Bachie.
There is fellow free agent rookie, 6-1, 231-pound Aaron Casey of Indiana. Both Casey and the 6-0, 230-pound Njongmeta are Big Ten scrappers who play bigger than that and faster than their 40s as run-and-chase backers.
There's also last year's undrafted free agent, the physical 6-3, 238-pound Shaka Heyward, who spent a year on the practice squad. The 6-0, 238-pound Devin Harper, picked up off waivers from Dallas last season, is a 2022 sixth-rounder who was one of the more athletic backers in his draft and lends some speed in the pass game.
Njongmeta is watching them all.
"There were a lot of opportunities to tackle the ball. It really came down to the coaches asking us to do the same thing since I got in the organization and that's doing it with enthusiasm and consistency," Njongmeta said. "I was telling my guys that we're doing the same stuff, just at a higher level."
Njongmeta didn't start playing football until he was a freshman at Adlai E. Stevenson High School. Until then, he did everything else: "Tae-kwon-do, cross country, I was a gym class hero." He became interested in football at an eighth-grade art symposium with high school students, one of whom was future Northwestern defensive back Cam Green.
"He was one of the star football players, and he was wearing this letter jacket and I thought he was the coolest dude ever," Njongmeta said. "I wanted to be just like him."
Green's dad once played for the Bears, a team Njongmeta never really followed. Until Thursday.
"When you think about it," he said, "when you look at how I started and where I am now, I'm blessed."
_Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo is anxious to see how his guys respond in Thursday's joint practice against the Bears' gifted weapons, featuring No. 1 overall pick quarterback Caleb Williams.
"We're going to try and go cover those great receivers, They've got a first-round pick who is a great player," Anarumo said. "It's going to be a great measuring stick for us."
After taking Williams, the Bears grabbed Washington's Rome Oduzne at No. 9 to join DJ Moore, coming off a 1,300-yard season. Plus, they added six-time Pro Bowler Keenan Allen, a figure the Bengals came to know well in his 12 seasons. He's scored three touchdowns against them in five games, but they've held him to seven yards per target. Then again, the Bengals' only current cornerback who was in high school when Allen played his first game against them in 2013 is the guy he'll see in the slot, Mike Hilton.
_For the most part, Anarumo liked what transpired against the Bucs last Saturday night.
"It was great to see the Ones get the three-and-out," Anarumo said. "Some of the other guys showed up and other guys have to keep practicing hard."
He thought rookie defensive tackle Kris Jenkins Jr., "for his first game, did a good job. I was pleased."
_Bengals head coach Zac Taylor is anxious to see where his club's conditioning is because he envisions a long day.
"Overall, it's just good to get as much work as we can, get different looks, see how our guys respond," Taylor said. "See how some of our young guys respond. They'll be long practices. They'll be difficult practices. In some ways, harder than games would be just because of the way it's structured without halftime or anything like that."
_Taylor thinks the practice periods are going to be pretty much the same as what the Bengals are doing back home.
"I think in some periods it's five continuous reps and sometimes with the backups it's three reps in a row," Taylor said. "The Ones get a fair amount of work, but it's still good work for the other groups and there's a lot to learn from."
_The starters work Thursday but not Saturday. Left end Sam Hubbard (knee) won't work either day.
"He's a guy I'm not going to rush right now. We want to make sure that he's 100% healthy before we get him back out there," Taylor said. "He's doing all the right things. He's involved in walk-throughs, doing all the things he can do right now."
_After watching the NFL's new kickoff rule for the first time, Taylor doesn't want to reveal very much.
"I think we'll continue to find that out as we keep going. I think everybody has got their thoughts that they will keep internally," Taylor said. "Once the regular season hits it may appear differently for a lot of teams. We'll just keep responding and evolving."
