The Cincinnati Bengals are set to host the Chicago Bears for a joint practice on Aug. 20, and second-year linebacker Demetrius Knight is treating it like a game.
This practice could serve as the final time the Bengals’ starters – including Knight – get game-like reps in before the regular season begins on Sept. 13.
In 2025, Bengals head coach Zac Taylor opted not to have joint practice with another team. This year, Taylor wanted to do it, and it worked out for the Bengals to host the Bears ahead of the second preseason game on Aug. 22.
Knight sees this two-hour practice as a chance to get better, and he’s doing everything he can to maximize the opportunity.
“If you're not treating it like a game, you're not taking it seriously,” Knight said.” You're not (treating) it as a professional. You're in this position to grow. You get a chance to go against another team, and it's not an opportunity that you take lightly.”
Preparation for the joint practice session includes film review for Knight and the Bengals’ linebackers. Knight says he’s watched tape of the Bears’ run and pass games on early downs to have a better understanding of what he’ll see in practice.
His film study doesn’t stop at the joint practice, either. Knight said he watched film of the Detroit Lions ahead of Cincinnati’s preseason opener on Aug. 13.
Watching film of opponents is a significant part of an NFL team’s game plan during the week. However, doing it before a joint practice isn’t as common.
Knight’s willingness to go an extra step in his preparation is for a good reason. Last year in preseason Knight didn’t watch any film of his opponents. The focus for the Bengals last year on defense in August was installing new defensive coordinator Al Golden’s new scheme.
It’s why Taylor decided not to have joint practice last year. He wanted his defensive players and coaches to have more time to focus on themselves without any distractions.
“I think last year everybody's trying to learn what to do,” Knight said. New DC (defensive coordinator), new coaches, and we're trying to learn each other. First game gets here, we'll just run our basic stuff. But this time around, it's like, hey, we are a second year in. We know what we're doing. We know what our bread and butter is. Let's find out what their bread and butter is and be ahead of it so it's not surprising to us.”
Joint practices allow players and coaches to provide a game-like atmosphere that is controlled. It’s beneficial for both teams and is typically used as a way to break up the monotony of training camp.
The Bengals are hoping to field an improved product on defense this season. Returning and new players will all be tasked with new expectations, and the goal is to build a championship-caliber defense in Cincinnati.
If the Bengals play well on defense against the Bears this week, it could be the confidence boost the unit needs heading into September when the games count.
“We're gonna anticipate,” Knight said. “We're gonna fly around. We're gonna continue to bring that chippiness type of energy that we've been bringing to every practice.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Demetrius Knight Jr. doing things differently for Bengals in Year 2