Locked On Bengals - Daily Podcast On The Cincinnati Bengals - Breaking Down the Cincinnati Bengals initial 53-Man roster and what moves could come next

Episode Date: August 27, 2024

The guys break down the most interesting takeaways as the Cincinnati Bengals cut their roster to 53 players on Tuesday. UDFA LB Maema Njongmeta made the team after a strong camp, all of the 2024 draft picks made it, and they went heavy at tight end, safety, and defensive tackle. But it's called the "initial" 53-man for a reason; more moves could come, and as waiver targets are clear around the NFL, we discuss the next potential targets for the Bengals.  For your next listen, check out the Locked On Fantasy Football podcast. Get daily insight to the best Fantasy draft strategies so you can win your league this season. Click HERE to listen now. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Your Team. Every Day.Join the Locked On Bengals Insider Community! https://joinsubtext.com/lockedonbengalsFind and follow Locked On Bengals on your favorite podcast platforms:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/locked-on-bengals-daily-podcast-on-the-cincinnati-bengals/id1159723162Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7AObc0lh0WmQl5fJVgtajsGoogle Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vbG9ja2Vkb25iZW5nYWxz?sa=X&ved=0CAYQrrcFahcKEwio_sXtj8nuAhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQAgStitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/locked-on-bengalsSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFL. Terms and conditions apply.eBay MotorsFor parts that fit, head to eBay Motors and look for the green check. Stay in the game with eBay Guaranteed Fit at eBayMotors.com. Let’s ride. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply.5-Hour EnergyGo to 5hourenergy.com and use promo code LOCKEDONFB to receive 20% off your order. This offer is only valid until September 30th on one order and cannot be used with other promotions. The code is not good on subscription orders. Go to 5hourenergy.com today!GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms Apply.FanDuelNow through September 22nd, ALL FanDuel customers can bet FIVE DOLLARS and get a THREE WEEK free trial of NFL Sunday Ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV. Visit FANDUEL.COM/LOCKEDON to get started. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Zach Taylor is officially on the record saying he's confident we will see Jamar Chase in week one for the Bengals. And we have a lot of takeaways to get to as the Bengals have cut their roster down to 53 players. You are Locked on Bengals, your daily Cincinnati Bengals podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. What up Bengals fans and welcome to another episode of the Locked on Bengals podcast. I'm your host, Jake Liskow. He's your host, James Rapine. Cincinnati Bengals have cut their roster to 53 players, and we will discuss the biggest

takeaways and what moves may come next after we get to Zach Taylor's comments on Jemar Chase. So this episode on the Locked-on podcast network, we're covering your team, the Cincinnati Bengals every day on YouTube, everywhere you get your podcast. Shout out to the everydayers and all of you who make us your first listen. And welcome to the show if you are new. Hope you stick around. You can hit the subscribe button on YouTube or anywhere you get your podcast to make that easy.

Today's episode is sponsored by GameTime where you can save $20 off your first purchase of tickets with promo code locked on NFL. Just check out the app. Terms apply. What time is it? Game time. It's also time to talk about Jamar Chase being ready.

According to Zach Taylor, no concerns about week one availability or readiness for Star Wide Receiver, Jamar Chase. Huge news. It is. And this is the most we've gotten out of Zach when it comes to anything Jamar Chase. So the fact that Jamar Chase,

he's confident that Jamar's going to be on the field, it can mean a few things. And they're really all good, like the first of which, I don't want to see Joe Burrow this year on the field without Jamar ever. I hope they're on the field together every single game of Bengals play.

And I know everyone watching, assuming you're a Bengals fan or listening, feels that way. And so there's reason to believe that that will happen. And so sign me up for that. Two, maybe this is because the contracts are in place to set the precedent, whether it's the CD-LAM deal, which happened after we recorded our last show,

or whether it was obviously the Justin Jefferson deal earlier this off-season, that maybe they can get something done, even though it doesn't feel like a Joe Burrow scenario, maybe it is internally. And I would love that, where it's a matter of when, not if something it's done, still feels a little unlikely to me, Jake. But you're telling me number one's going to be on the field, week one. That's a beautiful thing. I can't wait to see it. That is what we will remember.

Much more than we'll remember this training camp where Jamar Chase held in because we still have every belief that the deal will get done. And if the Bengals have fooled us once with Jesse Bates and folded us twice with T. Higgins and full us again on Jamar Chase. well, we'll never trust them to get anything right with one of their star players. It isn't a quarterback again. But the feeling remains that the deal, whether it's this year, whether it's next year, will be completed. And there's no real concern about that.

And there's no concern that Jamar is going to change his plan at this point, according to the sounds of things, to be with the team for week one. And as you said, that is great news. Yeah, great news. it's honestly could you imagine if he said we'd still have a plan or it was like not direct i know it was only one word right but yes speaks volumes that's all we need to hear and could he be a little limited for jemart like i don't need him to play 100 snaps like he did against the steelers two years ago to make an impact we know that it's also a downtrodden looking patriot's team so hopefully 100 snaps are not necessary for Jamar Chase and the starting offense.

It'll be good to have him back. It will be good to have him back. It's just that's such a weird game. We'll talk about that next week. But regardless, that news is as big, it's probably any news on the 53, and yet there's a lot of news on the 53. A lot of it probably won't surprise our everydayers, Jake. I think that is fair to say.

Yeah, I think we were pretty accurate. As we were trying to project the 53-man roster, the biggest questions that were answered today come in terms of which players required a trip to the injured reserve. And that is Miles Murphy and Brad Robbins both hitting the injured reserve. Both of those guys designated to return and the way that the rules work here is you're allowed to name up to two players on Cutdown Day as designated to return on the IR. They don't have to go to the 53 and then go to the IR like in years past. and teams have a total of eight IR returns they can use over the course of the season. So this is two of the eight. That is 25% of their IR returns that they're able to use.

I don't think that in-season trips to the IR are required at the time that they're put on the IR to be designated for return, unless that has also changed this year. Because last year it was when they were on the IR, if they became available to return, they could then designate them for return. and that would open up the several-week window to get them back onto the roster. Yeah, I don't think that's the case. You're right. Which to me is, one, you have six more spots. That's probably all you need.

You don't need 50 spots here. Two, I think with Miles Murphy, we kind of knew there was a chance it would happen. And I think it's roster gymnastics as much as anything, where instead of keeping him on the roster, and he's maybe back week three, and maybe he's ready, maybe he's not. Now you just know, all right,

when he's ready week five, he'll be ready week five, you can just kind of pencil that in and get him going. And who knows, maybe he doesn't come back to week six after he starts practicing all of those things. But still, I think they're playing it safe with Miles,

and that also increases the need to address the spot there, which we could talk about. And the other thing with punner, and that's a big talking point, Ryan Rico is still on notice here. I don't think that, I mean, if you thought that RICO was the guy, you could just IR Brad Robbins, period. And he's just done for the year.

And they didn't do that. They used one of those two spots and are going to designate him for return because they think he might be their punter for most of this season. I think that's what we're seeing. And they will get a practice window for him when he does return from the injury. So they'll have time to evaluate how things are looking for Robbins. how Rico has managed the first four weeks of the season. And once again, I mean, it's the same situation for Rico as it's been for the preseason. He has an opportunity to run away with this job if he can be really consistent in all aspects of his role for this team.

If he's out there averaging 50 yards a punt has no issues with the field goal operation, great. You don't have to worry about your punter spot anymore. But while there won't be competition coming in, according to Zach Taylor, RICO is expected to be the punter. That's the plan. he's in line to be the punter where Zach's words for week one, that could change when Brad Robbins returns, as you point out. And so we'll see about that.

Those are the two big IR moves. DJ Ivy also goes to the in-season physically unable to perform list, so he will continue to not count against the roster as he recovers from his ACL surgery last year after his unfortunate injury on a special teams play. Hopefully he comes back at some point in this season and gets healthy. It would be good to have that cornerback depth later in the season. Cornerback depth seems to always get tested. But no surprise there, DJ Ivy does not get off the pop list.

This is exactly what you would expect for him. And they'll keep him recovering in Cincinnati. It's wild. We're going to get into the corners that made the team in a second. But specifically the young guys, right? DJ Ivy's in that mix too. like another guy, like another young defensive back that they feel really darn good about. And so, yeah, hopefully he could continue to get healthy.

He certainly looks at the part. I've seen him in the facility a bunch this offseason. And it is bigger, thicker and looks like the size part of it that I think wild coaches initially of how he used it. I think he's going to make an impact this year. And so hopefully he can continue to get that knee healthy. If he gets back and gets healthy, that would be fantastic for this team. And if he continues a trajectory he was on last season, he should be a contributor for this team and would be part of this youth movement that you point out.

This is happening really all over the roster as the Bengals not only keep Mumajong Meta, undrafted free agent linebacker from Wisconsin, who didn't test like a great athlete, but continued to make plays and impress this coaching staff. And it's the initial 53, but he's on it for now. And that's where you would think he would be. they also kept all of their draft picks, all 10 of them. We will continue to discuss the biggest takeaways from the Bengals cut down to their initial 53, with all of those rookies leading the way coming up next.

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What time is it? It's game time. 10 rookies plus an undrafted free agent makes it 11 on the Cincinnati Bengals initial roster. Matt Lee, as we saw him, sees the opportunity throughout the preseason and training camp, beats out Trey Hill to be the backup center for the Bengals in 2020. Dejan Anthony makes it five safeties out of necessity. Six-round picks, Patrick Johnson will be as of today in the rotation with the defensive end players for week one. We'll see if the Bengals make a move there.

You alluded to that earlier. James Tanner McLaughlin makes it after there was a lot of consternation, a lot of hand-wringing from Bengals fans. That's to whether or not Tanner McLaughlin would sneak on to the 53. Those guys are there for now. Everyone picked before those guys, I think we assumed would be locks to make this team very early on in camp. Josh Newton made his ability known and made his favor from the coaches apparent in some of those early practices in training camp. And ahead of that, the Bengals are not cutting early picks unless something goes really haywire. And it didn't.

But for those two six and two seventh round picks making the team a message for the. affection the Bengals have for this rookie class and a serious movement toward youth at a number of spots. Yeah, I think that that's the theme here is, especially the 2021 draft, it kind of came to a head this year, right? Where Deonté Smith has the unfortunate injury, Trey Hill doesn't make the team. Jackson, Carmen, doesn't even come close to making the team and just got called for holding on his way up for a tryout for, all right, I'm going to stop being mean. The point is, is, like you're starting to see the out with the old, in with the new. And it feels like the new isn't just new. It feels like they can contribute. And they might have gotten it right with a lot of

these guys. Now, I'm not crowning Dejanne Anthony or I'm not crowning Matt Lee. I'm not crowning insert whoever you want to discuss yet. But I do think that it's it's noteworthy, that Tanner McLaughlin, someone that we didn't see a lot out of. But you and I both kind of leaned. I think that he's going to stick around, here's why, because they feel like he can help and contribute and be a part of the future and maybe contribute this year if they need him to. And that's what happened, because I think they feel really good about what he can bring. And the vibe for most of these guys, honestly, probably all of these guys, just feels different than some of these other draft classes that we've seen. The middle rounds, the late rounds. That doesn't mean that we weren't optimistic

about some of those late round picks. I remember being a, a, champion for Chris Evans and thinking that he was going to be a game changer. And it just, it didn't work out for him. And hopefully he gets healthy and can help. But yeah, I think that the vibes just feel different around Matt Lee. Like, doesn't he just feel like he's going to be able to contribute to if called upon? To me, it does. I think he's just exactly what you were hoping to get in round five, which is where I think he thought he was going to go in the draft.

He falls to round seven. And I'm not sure there was a better fit than this past first offense. with a team that definitely needed a backup center, and he could slide in and win that job. If they get contributions from all of these guys, and Matt Lee is going to be the backup center, that's awesome for a seventh round pick. You can get centers later in the draft,

but seventh round, your second seventh round pick at bat, which is only 13 picks later than your first, but even so, your late seventh round pick, getting a backup center, awesome, home run pick. Getting a guy that can contribute as a rotational piece on the back end of your defensive line room and Cedric Johnson, awesome. They love Dejaun Anthony. They were working him in with the starters and dime packages in camp.

We'll see if that continues into the regular season. But for a seventh round pick, if you're even considering that, that's awesome. Hopefully he continues to develop and make plays as they would expect them to. And if they can develop Tanner McLaughlin as they choose not to expose him to waivers, it's also great. You have a couple of other day three picks, and Eric Hall and Josh Newton that look like they will play some sort of significant role for this team this year and into the future. And that builds on potentially a trend of them starting to hit on some day three picks,

which is something that we've said, man, they really need to start getting some bigger contributions from day three picks. It's not just this year. It goes back to Chase Brown, Charlie Jones, Andre Yosevash. We just talked about DJ Ivy in the 2023 group, all potentially making contributions this year and into the future. And even before that, to a lesser degree, Cordell Vos and a day three pick in 2022, Tyson Anderson also sticking around. round on the 53-man roster as a specialist, a fifth round pick from 2022. They found some guys that are contributing to this team in meaningful ways. No necessarily standout All-Star breakout kind of sleeper diamond in the rough picks.

But we'll see. Maybe one of these guys turns into that level of player where they're a good starter from day three. And when you get those kinds of players looking at the bust rate for picks outside of the first round, that's a big step in the right direction for their recent draft history. For sure. It's what they need. They need the infusion, right? The 2020 and 2021, early 21 part of that draft, right?

But 2020, how much did it help nailing the picks that they were able to nail? And so, yeah, if you could get just role players, contributors with some of these late round picks, it's going to do huge things when you look up and you're like, oh, well, where do you go? And by the way, it was part of the reason why it was so tough, really to me,

not to make these decisions, but tough to find where the line was is because they had 10 really good draft picks. And think about who we're talking, like, are they going to keep Dejan Anthony or are they going to keep Tyson Anderson? It's like, well, they really like Tyson. They got to find someone else to get rid of

because they really like both of these guys. Tanner McLaughlin, There's no way they keep five tight ends. And I get it in a normal year, but it isn't a normal year because they got 10 draft picks and they feel really good about all 10. And knock on wood, especially with McKinley Jackson, all 10 are currently healthy-ish. And hopefully Jackson is healthier sooner rather than later. So hopefully they're all turning in the right direction.

Same with Mims, by the way. That would be the other one that I was kind of, I don't want to say leery about with IR because I didn't really anticipate that. but it's just good to see that that didn't happen. It means that we're going to see 71 in the near future, I bet. And Zach Taylor did comment on both of those guys. I think someone also spotted Amarius Mims in pads heading out to practice, potentially this week in one of the Bengals social videos behind Orlando Brown.

That would have been Monday. They tagged us both in it, James. We should have talked about it before I surprised you with it on air. But Zach did say on Amarius Mims that he didn't think that they would get a whole lot of practice from him this week. They would reevaluate next week. Didn't sound like there was a ton of concern there, but still day-to-day, a week-to-week to for Marius Mims. He also commented on McKinley Jackson when asked about the IR timelines and what the situation was there with Miles Murphy and Brad Robbins hitting IRR, McKinley-Jackson, not hitting IR, said the timeline is just a little bit more favorable for McKinley-Lexam.

They did, however, keep six defensive tackles. They kept five safeties. They kept five tight ends. These are things that they haven't really done lately if you were looking at recent history to see how they usually make these decisions. There are some anomalies here. Three running backs, five tight ends, five safeties stand out among those anomalies compared to what they have done in terms of trends in their initial 53 construction in the recent past. So while the timeline is more optimistic for McKinley Jackson, it still, the fact that they keep J. Tufele,

who we both thought was the next guy that they would keep if somebody needed to go to the IR, tells you that they still feel like they need that depth on the defensive interior. And I think that having to put Miles Murphy on the IR reveals a need for depth on the edge as well. So we can talk about some of the moves that might come next to finish up the show

in addition to the rest of our thoughts on the cutdowns. I want to make sure we talk about Jalen Davis, who is not subject to waivers as well. We'll get to those topics to finish the show coming up next. Let's start with Jalen Davis, Jake, because he's someone that two weeks ago I had on the roster, and I thought about it more. And I was like, all right, well, if they keep five safeties and five linebackers, and I think that's what it came down to, is they decided, all right, we're keeping five safeties. if we keep Muma Jong Mehta,

if we keep Joe Bachi, who is dealing with an injury, we'll see on him. We can talk about that. But you got to go. Like Jalen Davis is the odd man out. And so we'll see. As in the past, we've seen these vested veterans that get released to create a space,

create a spot. I don't think this is that. I think they're hoping to get him to the practice squad. And we'll see if he makes it there. Because like you said, no waivers. Teams can call him right now. and nickel cornerbacks, reliable nickel cornerbacks, they are hard to find when you don't have one.

So it wouldn't be shocking if Jalen Davis did get some interest across the league. Yeah, the Bengals like Jalen Davis. I'm sure they would like him back in some capacity. They also feel like Josh Newton can play inside and outside. They feel like DJ Turner can play inside and outside, and they've got Mike Hilton as a starter. So when you feel like you've got a number of guys, Dax Hill also can play inside outside,

although they prefer him outside. And you feel like you've got that amount of time. Yeah. I know you've brought that up a few times. I still haven't seen him match up with non-tight ends and non-running backs playing in the slot. But if that's another role for him, great. I haven't seen him try to match up a ton with wide receivers in the slot, although he was responsible for that one crosser to who's a Colts rookie wide receiver.

Adonine Mitchell. Is that right? In the preseason game? The crosser. Yeah. But that wasn't like a slot alignment. and he was trying to match him from a safety alignment on that play. But regardless, they feel like they've got a number of defensive backs with versatility.

And at that point, they tried Jalen Davis outside quite a bit in that final preseason game, probably a showcase, I would imagine. And it's also good to get that film as well for yourselves. But when you have that kind of versatility in your DB room, it perhaps makes a guy that you feel is a slot-only type corner, a little bit less important to keep around. Yeah, I think that was it. I think it's just the versatility.

I mean, Josh Newton impressing, Dejan Anthony impressing. Well, there's two draft picks. We just talked about the value of draft picks. Well, there's an odd man out in some situations. And Davis, we'll see if he makes it back. I like JD a lot. And I selfishly hope he's around. At the same time, I'm sure he wants to be on a 53-man roster.

And let's talk about Joe Bachi. Because I think this could impact things. I don't know how serious his injury is. he was he was on he's been on the field so it's probably not super serious because he's been on the field not dressed or anything but if they wanted to make a move there and let's say he is out for a month and they go injured reserve well that could clear another spot that could also be why mumma jong meta did make it initially you don't want to risk him going to waivers uh there's also the scenario where where mumma or the other one is the defensive tackle room i don't think you're

keeping six defensive tackles long term. Unless you're trying Zach Carter out at defensive end, Jake. I know you're a big fan of that idea. Yep. That's why you hesitated too. It wasn't the mute button. No, that was on purpose. Yeah, there's definitely some moves to come.

We'll get to those in just a second. Just want to run down the rest of the waived players that were cut on Tuesday in the initial cut down. So Logan Woodside was cut. He's not subject to waivers, but Woodside was one of the players released, one of the two vested veterans, the Bengals released. The waived players were Travis Bell, who I imagine they would want back on the practice squad for some nose tackle depth. We'll see. I think a lot of the practice squad this year, James honestly will come from outside the organization, but I digress.

Quarterback Nate Brooks, wide receiver, Cole Burgess, tackle Devin Cochran. That's another one I think they'll want back in the practice squad. Elijah Collins halfback Carlos Davis and Dominique Davis the defensive tackles Nate Gilliam another player I think they would want back Cam Grandi I think they'll want back

Devin Harper and Shaka Hayward linebackers I thought Hayward had a really good preseason I think they'd be happy to have him back and Harper is a guy they had around to do special teams things in the past wouldn't be shocked there either Trey Hill talked about him a little bit earlier

wouldn't be shocked if they wanted him back on the practice squad to be honest Juddrick Jackson and Kendrick Pryor same boat wide receivers I think they'll want on the practice squad. B.J. Jules, the safety, again, I think he could be practice squad destined if he isn't claimed, and Lance Robinson cornerback was waived, injured. Would be a little bit surprised to see Lance Robinson back, but maybe Nate Brooks comes back. I think they will be looking externally,

though, for a number of these practice squad spots. Yeah, I think so. And that's why when you looked at this roster, projection-wise, I think there was like 56 guys for 53 spots. and you kind of knew. Like it wasn't like there were 65 guys and it was really tough. And so when that's the case, some of these guys are going to be back on the practice squad.

I think the Bengals are going to be looking. They're going to be busy. And they're going to be looking for a bunch of things here. Right. And everyone's thinking that's listening, defensive tackle, running back, defensive end.

And it might be defensive end, defensive tackle, then running back, but certainly the D-line has to be the priority. And their actions show that, keeping six defensive tackles, You only have four defensive ends right now. I certainly expect a move on the D-line. And I don't want to say expect running back,

but I sort of do. Now, that might be a practice squad move where they bring someone out, someone in from another team and just sign them to the practice squad. But I expect moves at both of these spots some new faces in the running back room and certainly at defensive line,

whether it's tack or end. Could be a couple moves of running back. It could be a practice squad running back that is not currently. a player that spent this training camp with Cincinnati Bengals, and Samajai Pierine was cut by the Denver Broncos. They were unable to find a trade partner on Tuesday. Would you sign him?

Yes or no. I would. I do think that he elevates the floor. There are players that I would prefer, but I do think that he is better than their current RV3. I think that he allows you to keep three running backs and also improve your depth of the running back position. It's just not that exciting.

The much more important positions that I'm thinking about are defensive tackle waiver claims and defensive end waiver claims if they can find them. There were a number of interesting defensive tackles cut, PJ Mustifer, Juan Briggs, two of the more noteworthy. We don't have a full list of the players cut for all teams. For some reason, the Jets, 53-man roster has not been revealed as of the time of recording. So we don't know about Israel Abonaconda yet, but that's a running back, obviously, that we talked about recently.

So, yeah, there are going to be a number of defensive linemen that are going to be interesting, waiver targets. Bengals at 18 in waiver priority through week three. Then it will reflect the standings, but until then, they'll be 18th. And I would expect to see a couple of moves here. You're right. Defensive end, defensive tackle, offensive line, potentially, although I think that it is a bit lower on the priority list. We know they tend to love their own guys on the offensive line. And running back would be the ones that stand out for sure.

You mentioned Joanne Briggs, and for those watching on YouTube, I'm wearing the old school Bearcats hat for a reason today, baby. Right there. Bearcat. Go get the Bearcat. I literally wrote to a media member. Not going to say who, because I'm not sure that he wants me to say who. And the Bengals clearly got their seventh round picks right with Dejan Anthony and Matt Lee.

Both guys made the roster. So that's already getting it right when you have 10 draft picks. But seventh round was rolling around. And I wrote down Joanne Briggs, no matter. what. Obviously, that's a draft day line. Obviously, he ended up in Cleveland. Obviously, Cleveland didn't value him and got rid of him because they have a deep defensive line. Come back home, Joanne. It is time. There are some other players that also make sense. I would welcome Joanne Briggs to the Cincinnati Bengals. They might look for a bigger body type would be the only thing I would say there. He's not the nose

tackle traditional 320-pounder type of guy. Nice, 300. Yeah. He has a defensive tackle. And they need to improve. I mean, you've heard us talk about this a lot if you're in every day. They need to improve their defensive tackle depth. I like their first three well enough.

I like them a little bit less without DJ Reader, obviously. But those guys get on the field beyond just the top three. And I think they need to get a little bit better there behind Chris Jenkins as a third. and Charlton Reckons and BJ Hill as the starters. Oh, well, for sure. There's no debate there. They do. And that's why you take swings on McKinley Jackson and Joanne Briggs

and hopefully those guys, along with the BJ Hill, who's going to play some of that nose role. He just is. Hopefully you can piece it together. That's what I would be hoping at this stage. Now, maybe there's someone else. Maybe there's trade negotiations, trade talks. Sign me up for that as well.

But I think defensive line, running back. Those are the two that I really, really hammer home my last point that will leave locked on Bengals listeners with because it would not shock me if we see a couple of moves over the next 24, 48 hours. The Bengals return to practice in 24 hours, maybe a little bit less depending on, well, definitely less depending on when you're listening to this. And we'll have you covered with some thoughts and takeaways as the practice squads will start to take shape over the next couple of days here. They're allowed to start forming practice squads a day after the cut down to 53. We'll have potentially some media availability from some players. Maybe we'll hear from Jamar Chase for the first time this year. Maybe not.

But if we do, certainly something that we will be talking about here on Lockdown Bengals. So we'll have those thoughts. And more for you here as this roster continues to take shape over the course of the rest of the week. Until then, thanks for listening to this episode of the Lockdown Bengals podcast. Houda and have a good one.