CINCINNATI (WKRC) – Bengals head coach Zac Taylor on Friday said he has talked with linebacker Logan Wilson regarding the public trade demand he made on Thursday and told him, “just keep focusing on being here, and helping us as best you can.”
Even though he officially started the last two games, because the Bengals opened both games with a three-linebacker alignment, Wilson played only 12 defensive snaps at Green Bay and 26 in the most recent game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Rookie Barrett Carter has played significantly in place of Wilson in each of the last two games, logging all 61 defensive snaps at Green Bay and all 57 defensive snaps against Pittsburgh.
“I know he’s frustrated with the role, but he’s handled it really well,” Taylor said of Wilson, who is under contract through the 2027 season that calls for him to make roughly $13 million in base salary over the 2026 and 2027 seasons. “He’s done a great job with the young linebackers. He’s continued to be in a leadership role on our team. I know that this situation can be difficult and challenging and just keep focus on being here and working for us and finding ways to win.”
The other starting linebacker is also a rookie in Demetrius Knight, so there is no doubt Taylor is rolling the dice in not playing Wilson much. Carter had a team-high 12 tackles in the 33-31 win over the Steelers, while Knight had four and one of the team’s quarterback hits on Pittsburgh’s Aaron Rodgers.
“There’s positives and there are things to continue to learn from,” Taylor said of Carter and Knight. “I’m thinking, I don’t know how many games Aaron Rodgers has played in, but as I’m watching the tape he’s probably in the 230s to 250s in terms of amount of games he’s played in his life and I’m looking at two linebackers and (rookie defensive) Shemar (Stewart) playing in his second-and-a-half game almost. Some of things Rodgers does really stresses you and he gets you in a look and then he likes to check the play and then he’s in no huddle and he’s in tempo and it causes a lot of stress. There’s a lot for these guys to learn from and they’re going to continue to ascend and learn as they accumulate reps and get to game 7 and 8 and 9 and some day they’ll get to 250 hopefully, that would be amazing. We’re going to gain a lot from them getting this experience and they’re going to continue to get better every week. I’m really pleased with the way they approach everything and they’re going to continue to keep learning and getting better.”
Taylor also said on Friday that cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt had good week of practice after being a healthy scratch for last Thursday’s game against the Steelers and will be active for Sunday’s game.
“He seems to be in a good head space and practiced well,” said Taylor. “I like how he’s responded and now it’s just continue to be be consistent with the response.”