CINCINNATI (WKRC) – While the Bengals defense faces several question marks coming out of the offseason program, including a couple of players embroiled in contract disputes, the offense has far less uncertainty, which is why offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher expects his unit to hit the ground running when training camp begins next month.
“Continuity is huge,” said Pitcher. “It gives you a sense of comfort as a coach. Each year is a new year, but one of the first things we talked about as a unit when we got together this spring is there are very few offenses in the league that have the experience and the time and the reps together that we have. Don’t apologize for that. Take advantage of that. Build on the foundation that currently exists. I think we’ve done that this spring. It makes you feel good, but you have to use it. If someone’s giving you a head start in the race, don’t go back and start with everybody else. Take the damn head start and use it. That’s what we’re trying to do.”
Of the 11 main starters on offense last season, nine and possibly 10 return. Both starting guard spots are up for grabs with rookie Dylan Fairchild battling incumbent Cordell Volson at left guard and veteran free agent signee Lucas Patrick battling Cody Ford at right guard. Fairchild and Patrick worked with the first team during practices open to the media.
“Really impressed with Dylan,” said Pitcher. “You know, this this time of year for those guys, it’s, obviously, it’s a different, it’s a different emphasis, right? We don’t have the pads on. You’re not getting the day in and day out physical battles that are going to characterize training camp and really that characterize success at that position. So, what are you looking for? You’re looking for a guy who comes to work every day, who’s dialed in, who’s a pro, who asks good questions. You like the look in his eye. Doesn’t feel too big. Joe (Burrow) makes an adjustment, he knows what he’s doing. He’s constantly attached to (center) Ted (Karras’) hip. Ted’s doing a great job bringing him up to speed on everything. He takes it in. You can see the understanding. … and I think physically is everything we expected him to be. How does he handle when he makes a mistake? Obviously, mistakes happen for rookies. He’s upset at himself and frustrated, which I like to see, like, you know, you don’t want a guy that makes a mistake and says, ‘Oh, well, I’m just a rookie,’ so you’re going to get more of that, like he’s, he’s mad at himself, and he wants to be able to make all the adjustments that we would expect a veteran to make. I think he’s made steps in that direction. So just really pleased all around with his response and his overall approach.”
Burrow is coming off his best statistical season as a pro in 2024 and looked sharp throughout the spring. It didn’t hurt that he got a chance to work with all the receivers, including Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, who were full participants in the offseason programs after Chase didn’t participate in any last offseason and Higgins missed a handful.
“I thought there were a lot of examples of a group that’s been together for a long time executing in a level that I would expect them to execute at this time of year,” said Pitcher. “It’s everybody here, everybody working. You know, for the first time in four or five years, we’re not getting a pass catching tight end up to speed. He’s here (Mike Gesicki), and he’s integrated within the system, and he’s making great adjustments within that. You know, I think what we do talking about Mike specifically, I think for a lot of our guys, but Mike specifically, I think we’re a match made in heaven. I think we’re doing a good job, but I keep coming back to that’s what we should look like right now. That’s if we have the type of expectations for ourselves. If we want to do the things we think we can do, that’s exactly what we should look like.”
Pitcher said he also saw No. 3 receiver Andrei Iosivas continue to make strides.
“I just think you’re seeing he’s the perfect example of a guy that you take late in the draft because of his physical gifts,” said Pitcher. ‘He’s got tremendous intelligence, so you’ve got a smart guy with physical gifts, coming from a small school (Princeton), entering the big pond and having to figure out what that means and the physicality that comes with that. So he makes a jump from Year One (in 2023) to Two. Now from (Year) Two to Three, you see the confidence. You see the chest out. You see just how he carries himself. Like, he believes that he’s like those other two guys (Chase and Higgins), and he’s making steps to get there. In a lot of other buildings, he would have the opportunity that Tee Higgins has. So when you don’t have that same volume, he knows that when the ball does come his way, he’s got to take advantage of it. I just think you’ve seen the confidence grow. Super proud of his progression and I think you’re only going to see him continue to get better.”
There is also hope that Jermaine Burton, who had a troubled rookie season on and off the field, can be added to the mix this season.
“Jermaine’s done everything that we’ve asked him to do throughout the spring,” said Pitcher. “He’s got a good look in his eye. He’s here putting the time in. I would say that his mental errors and things that are within his control are much improved from where they were a year ago, which is a jump I would expect most second-year players to make, but it’s notable for Jermaine. I do see him putting the work in. Really, for Jermaine, it’s just going to be about maintaining consistency. Having that be able to sustain through training camp, through the preseason, when there’s a hiccup, when something doesn’t go his way, when he doesn’t have a great practice, maybe the opportunities aren’t all there that he would like. How consistent can he be? So, we’ll challenge him that way but pleased with what he’s done this spring.”
Last season saw the emergence of running back Chase Brown as a major weapon as a runner and receiver as over his last eight games, all of which he started after splitting time with Zack Moss, he amassed 900 yards from scrimmage (631 rushing and 299 receiving).
“Chase is another guy who fits in the same category as (Iosivas),” said Pitcher. “The progression is natural. He’s got a well rounded skill set. He obviously contributed a lot in that phase last year. You start to see what else can we do? Where else can we put him? All along, there does come a point where you have to focus your resources and make tough decisions. There’s a lot of good ideas. You have to decide which are the ones are you going to invest time in. Getting the backs involved in the pass game is something we intend to do. We have to continue to be able to take advantage when teams dedicate resources to stopping the passing attack. The shell coverage, creating six, five-and-a-half man boxes, those are things we have to be able to take advantage of. We don’t have to do every run scheme in the world. We can make sure our universe is just the right size, rep it over and over again and execute consistently up front. I believe Chase Brown is a top-10 back in the league.”
The weapons are certainly wide spread, which can make it difficult to keep everyone happy, but Pitcher is embracing the situation.
“The good kind of difficult,” said Pitcher. “That’s the kind of difficult you sign up for, and that’s not difficult. That’s the job. It’s, here are the ingredients, make the meal, and we’ve got some really good ingredients. We’re gonna figure out ways to keep them all involved. That’s what the offseason is for. That’s why we have really smart coaches on staff who have their own areas of specialty (and) who spend a lot of time working on that and bring a lot of great ideas to the table.”