Coach Zac Taylor opted to sit the starters for the Bengals home-opener and preseason finale against the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday.
Taylor was asked if he would start Joe Burrow and company and he quickly answered by saying, “They’re not playing.” It was as simple as that.
With the Starters seeing more preseason action than ever before, Cincinnati hopes to avoid another slow start to begin the season. The Bengals have started 0-2 for the past three seasons and Taylor says he feels a lot better with where their at.
“I feel further along as a team right now than I did last year because these guys have played in two preseason games, I feel better going into the early parts of the season than I probably did a year ago.”
What to watch:
Even with all of the fire power out of this game, there is still plenty to watch for, such as position battles.
Defensive tackle will be a position to keep your eye on as McKinnley Jackson, Taven Bryan, Howard Cross, and Eric Gregory will see the field. Cross and Gregory have impressed in the preseason, going into the offseason they were placed as the fourth strings, so they have a shot to propel themselves up the depth chart.
Also pay attention to the guard position with Jalen Rivers expected to start, what does that mean for Lucas Patrick and Cody Ford? Who are both dealing with injuries. If Rivers impresses, we could see Lucas Patrick as the backup, he has had a rough preseason that was visible in week two.
Wide Receiver was a position battle until Mitchell Tinsley put up an outstanding performance earlier this week, scoring two touchdowns in twenty seconds! So I expect him to make the team.
Although it might seem like another boring, hard to watch preseason game (and it could be) there is a lot at stake for the backups fighting for a roster spot.