Joe Burrow, the quarterback for the Bengals, can be excused for forgetting on Thursday that he had actually participated in an NFL preseason game.
Naturally, his three preseason plays in the 2021 season finale versus the Dolphins were utterly forgettable if not dangerous.
Right tackle Riley Reiff was called for 15 yards for roughness, slot receiver Tyler Boyd botched a reverse for two yards, the receivers blew up a bunch formation, and rookie Ja’Marr Chase almost lost it all on an incompletion, and Burrow graciously handed the ball to running back Joe Mixon for five yards to get out of there.
But maybe that’s why Thursday’s revelation that head coach Zac Taylor is targeting Burrow and the starters for the Aug. 10 preseason opener at Paycor versus the Buccaneers sits well—despite the pandemonium, two weeks later Burrow earned his only Opening Day start.
Burrow remarked, “Those didn’t exactly go great.” “I assume those three plays were merely to get my feet wet. They weren’t really three plays that were part of our offense, in my opinion. A full drive will be enjoyable.”
When Taylor looks at the short 17 days between the opener and final cuts, which include two joint practices, that seems to be as good a place as any to get snaps. Taylor has discussed the preseason opener informally with his starters (“I’m not setting that in stone right now, but I’m optimistic that that’s where it’s trending for our team”).
“We’re just trying to make sure our team is prepared for the first week of the season, what work do we need to get done, and so these games factor into that,” Taylor stated.
Tee Higgins, a wide receiver, was among the No. 1 players who did not play in the previous two preseasons due to injuries, so Burrow is excited to play in his third preseason game as a professional.
“It’s critical to obtain game-like repetitions,” Higgins stated following practice on Thursday. “You want game-like reps in practice, but you’re going against the same guys every day, so it’s good to go against a different opponent.”
Burrow promises that this one won’t be nearly as crazy as his one and only preseason show.
WR Tee Higgins is the player of the day.
Higgins looked like himself for the first time this camp, which indicates that he was excellent. As soon as he stabilized himself, he began to seize the balls that were bouncing off his palms.
Catch an early team practice on a day that reached a scorching 89 degrees with high humidity. He connected with Burrow on a long floater that went down a left seam. Positioned to cover No. 1 cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt, Higgins hesitated before springing to his feet in response to Burrow’s pass and firing away from Taylor-Britt, who was playing from his back.
It felt a lot like a gaming representative. I always get terrific game rep from Cam,” Higgins remarked. “In camp, Cam and I like to ball.” I want a guy like that to help me improve. It is those one-on-one fights that we are searching for. And I was able to adjust when Joe threw a fantastic ball into the air.”
The 6-4 Higgins converted a third-and-three later in the session when the offense and defense competed in a red zone lockout. He did so by posting up the 5-9 Mike Hilton and winning the rep with his trademark big body move, ascending the ladder.
“Zac called one of the plays where it’s kind of a post-up play and Joe gave me a ball,” Higgins explained. “It was just me going to get a rebound.”
He may not quite reach the heights of a Bill Russell Game Seven rebound, but he is making progress.
“I’m eager to regain my legs. Got them back at last,” Higgins remarked. “I’m starting to play football now. I’m settling back in because I missed OTAs.”
