It was another scorching weather day as the Cincinnati Bengals took to the practice fields on Aug. 10.
They primarily focused on special teams execution, addressing scenarios to improve on before the second preseason game on Aug. 18.
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The offense had another win in the team portion, with Joe Burrow, Chase Brown, Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins looking like rock stars after the pre-practice stretching playlist featured tracks by Pearl Jam, Soundgarden and AC/DC.
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Here are The Enquirer’s observations from Day 13 of training camp.
Special teams drills fill the second half of practice
The Bengals had two noticeable special teams miscues in their loss to Philadelphia.
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At the start of the third quarter, D.J. Ivey was offsides on a missed 55-yard field goal, allowing the Eagles to drive another 30 yards downfield before converting a 23-yard field goal.
Trailing 27-17 at the start of the fourth quarter, McKinnley Jackson nullified a 23-yard field goal with an unnecessary roughness penalty. The Eagles scored a two-yard touchdown on the next play that ultimately proved to be the winning difference.
The final 45 minutes of the Aug. 10 practice were spent in various punt and field goal formations, as well as fielding punts.
A notable absence on Sunday was wide receiver and kick returner Jermaine Burton, who is considered day-to-day with an undisclosed injury, per the team.
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Burton did have a bright spot in the second half of the first preseason game. He fielded a punt at the Bengals’ 45-yard line and returned it 23 yards, starting a drive that ended with a 36-yard field goal.
Bengals offense capitalizes on a long drive to end the team portion
The first team offense put together one of the more impressive touchdown drives of camp thus far.
Starting with their backs against the goal line, Burrow and company marched down the field with surgical precision. Brown featured heavily, taking handoffs, shovel passes and running a variety of routes. His 10-yard touchdown catch came on a play that also saw Burrow scramble to the right after the pocket collapsed.
Running back Chase Brown is stood up Eagles linebacker Jihaad Campbell during the preseason game Aug. 7. Brown was one of the more impressive players during camp work on Aug. 10.
Of course, that kind of drive, featuring a variety of looks, is what fans have come to expect. But it felt a little different than the five- and 10-play drives that resulted in touchdowns at Philadelphia. It was a clock-eater and yet another sign that the offense is operating at the highest level possible.
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Defensive lineman T.J. Slaton continued his strong camp by batting down a pass and wrapping up Brown at the line of scrimmage during the drive.
Earlier in the practice session, Burrow handed off to Brown from the two-yard line. Brown wisely chose a three-yard gap that Amarius Mims and Lucas Patrick had opened up on the right side, bursting for about 15 yards before contact was made.
Those back-to-the-goal line scenarios, as well as powerful runs to set up second-and-short and third-and-short situations, are exactly what offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher is looking for from the running game.
“There’s some different measures, efficiency being one of them. How many times, when we hand the ball off, does the result of that play keep us on schedule?” Pitcher said.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Observations from Day 13 of Cincinnati Bengals training camp