The Cincinnati Bengals are one game closer to the regular season with the first preseason game now in the books.
Most starters played in the first exhibition game, which the Bengals won 16-14. Bengals coach Zac Taylor and his staff will have plenty to watch on film over the next few days as the team gets ready for joint practice with the Chicago Bears on Aug. 20.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the Bengals’ first preseason game.
First-team offense shows some good, bad
The Bengals’ first drive on offense with the starters featured some good and bad. It went exactly how one would expect it to go considering this was the first time these players had played a game in six months.
Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase and Cincinnati’s starting offensive line got one full drive together. Every starter minus Chase got a second series. Chase wasn’t someone Taylor felt he needed to see any more from on the night.
Taylor dialed up a mix of runs and passes, mostly featuring Burrow under center. The team is trying to incorporate more of that in the offense as they look to be more explosive in the run and pass game this season. In fact, Cincinnati’s first four offensive plays with Burrow were under center.
Burrow was sacked once and hit on another pass attempt, resulting in a punt for Cincinnati’s starting offense following a 16-yard reception to Chase. Any time Burrow takes an unnecessary hit – or two in this case – in a meaningless game, it’s a cause for concern.
But it’s worth noting that there’s no game planning for preseason games. So, Cincinnati’s offensive line and the entire unit for that matter should be evaluated with that fact in mind.
On the lone sack, Burrow held the ball longer than he likely would in a regular season game.
It wasn’t ideal to see Lions’ defensive end Eric O’Neill whip past left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. to hit Burrow as he was throwing, though. Brown had an up and down season last year for the Bengals and told The Enquirer he’s in the best shape of his life heading into this season.
The Bengals need a strong season from Brown to reach the levels they want to on offense. Brown protects Burrow’s blind side, and the Bengals need Burrow to get through this year healthy.
Burrow finished the game completing 5 of 6 passes for 39 yards and zero touchdowns. Chase Brown led the way on the ground with 16 yards on five carries.
Still too early to give real evaluation of new Bengals defense
Cincinnati’s starting defense was missing a few key players on Thursday night. Safety Bryan Cook and cornerback Dax Hill were ruled out by Taylor prior to the game. Slot cornerback Jalen Davis also didn’t play.
And that’s why it’s hard to give a full evaluation of the Bengals’ starting defense with so many key players out. The Lions opted not to play their starters on offense, as quarterback Jared Goff watched from the sidelines.
With Cook out, Kyle Duggar started at safety opposite of Jordan Battle who recorded an interception when Lions wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa tipped the ball off his hands on the first series. The Bengals want to be a more opportunistic defense this year, and Battle coming down with an interception in the first preseason game is a step in the right direction.
Defensive linemen Jonathan Allen, Boye Mafe, Myles Murphy and Lawrence all started together and played three snaps before Lawrence and Allen were taken off the field.
Third-year defensive tackle Kris Jenkins saw a lot of playing time in the first half and made the most of his opportunities. Jenkins recorded a quarterback hit and a sack against the Lions. Jenkins, the Bengals’ second-round pick in 2024, needs to show progress in the month of August. He’s yet to showcase the type of production needed for a player picked as high as he was (49th overall) in the NFL draft.
In 29 games for the Bengals, Jenkins has 4.5 sacks and eight quarterback hits.
The Bengals loaded up on the defensive line this offseason, and rosters spots at this position are at premium.
Rookie report: Tight end Jack Endries officially makes a roster push with touchdown
Cincinnati used one of its two seventh-round picks on tight end Jack Endries out of the University of Texas.
With the return of Erick All and the known commodities at the tight end position in Mike Gesicki, Tanner Hudson and Drew Sample, Endries hasn’t been a name mentioned much through two weeks into training camp practice.
Endries made a name for himself in his first preseason game hauling in a four-yard touchdown pass from veteran quarterback Joe Flaco.
Bengals director of personnel Duke Tobin and Taylor will get together after each preseason game and discuss the state of the 53-man roster. It seemed unlikely heading into the preseason that the Bengals would carry five tight ends on the roster.
But if Endries continues to make plays in the next two games, he could end up earning a roster spot.
Defensive end Cashius Howell played a significant amount in the first half and recovered a fumble. He didn’t register a sack or quarterback hit, but getting on the stat sheet as a rookie is important.
Wide receiver Colbie Young was inconsistent in his first game with the Bengals. On four targets, Young caught two passes for 28 yards. Preseason reps will be important for Young because the Bengals have high hopes for eventually playing a significant role in the offense.
Offensive lineman Brain Parker saw quality reps and even saw time with the second-team offense blocking for Flacco. Cornerback Tacario Davis and offensive lineman Connor Lew were the two rookies who didn’t play in Cincinnati’s first exhibition game.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What we learned about Bengals in preseason win over Lions