Locked On Bengals - Daily Podcast On The Cincinnati Bengals - Cincinnati Bengals 53-Man Roster Predictions | Difficult Decisions!

Episode Date: August 25, 2025

The Cincinnati Bengals are working through their roster gymnastics to get the roster to a regular season 53, so it's time for our annual roster prediction! Jake Liscow and James Rapien walk through the depth chart and analyze the likely cuts and keeps, and clear areas where the Bengals will be looking for external help. Who will get through the initial cutdown? We discuss the cases for players on the end of the roster like Cam Grandy, Andrew Coker, Howard Cross, Taven Bryan, P.J. Jules, and Daijahn Anthony. 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-bengalsListener SurveyWe’ve put together a survey to learn more about our listeners and make your favorite podcasts even better. Go to https://lockedonpodcasts.com/survey/ to get started. Everyone who completes a survey will be entered for a chance to win one of ten $100 Amazon gift cards.   Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!RugietHead to Rugiet.com/LOCKEDONNFL and use code LOCKEDONNFL to get 15% off today.UpsideDon’t let this offer drive on by, download the free Upside app now using my limited time promo code TOUCHDOWN for a limited time 25 cent per gallon bonus! Offers vary by user and location, Go to upside.com for terms and conditions.Click Here to download the app: https://getupside.onelink.me/zlLr?af_xp=custom&pid=barrington&c=barrington_lockedon25&deep_link_value=promo&deep_link_sub1=lockedon25&af_dp=upsideapp%3A%2F%2FYahoo FantasyPresented by YahooFantasy #YahooPartner. Draft now at https://yahoofantasy.com/lockedonnfl.PrizePicksDownload the PrizePicks app today and use code LOCKEDONNFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.FanDuelToday's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Football season is around the corner, visit the FanDuel App today and start planning your futures bets now.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.

The Cincinnati Bengals have some difficult decisions to make. Let's find our way to an initial 53-man roster. You are Locked-on Bengals, your daily Cincinnati Bengals podcast. Part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. What on, Bengals fans, and welcome to another episode of the Locked-on Bengals podcast. Part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. I'm Jake Liscoe. He's James Rapina.

We've been hosting the Lockdown Bengels podcast. Bengals podcast between the two of us since 2016, making it your best, a one-stop shop for everything. Bengals, from the latest news to analysis to game breakdowns, we've got you covered all year round. The everydayers out there already know that. And if you'd like to become an everyday, shout out to you if you're already making us part of your everyday routine, just hit that subscribe button on YouTube or anywhere you get your podcast.

And that'll help you make sure you don't miss an episode. And you can even make us your first listen. Appreciate all of you out there to make Locked-on Bengals their first listen. James, today we dive into a 53-man roster projection in an exercise that for me was a little bit harder than most years. There's a lot of gray area this year. Today's episode is brought to the people by Fandul with football season right around the corner. Visit the Fandul at today and start planning your futures bets now. Let's get started with the easy stuff, shall we?

I think there are a couple of positions just going through the roster, quarterback, running back. The first two that I look at when I look at my depth charts, the way that I've got it laid out, those are pretty clear cut. And then it gets a little bit interesting. Sure. Quarterback, they were always keeping two. Desmond Ritter could have been perfect in preseason. And I'm not sure, and he was far from it, but I'm not sure that they would keep three quarterbacks.

And so it's Joe Burrow, Jake Browning, those are the two they're going to keep. I do think they want Desmond Ritter on the practice squad and in the organization. And then it's three running backs. And Kendall Milton put on a show and might have been able to get some looks elsewhere with what he did in that preseason finale. But he's not making this roster. It's going to be Chase Brown, Samadj, P. Ryan, Judge Brooks. And I do think that they want Kendall Milton on the practice squad. But there you go.

Those are your two, I would say, cut and dry really easy projections when it comes to this roster. And you say that, and I listen to you talking about wanting Desmond Ritter back on the practice squad, and I wouldn't be surprised at all if they looked externally for practice squad quarterbacks either, just based on everything that we saw from Desmond Ritter in the preseason. But if they like him, they like him. We've seen them keep players that were mystifying choices to us on the outside in the past because they really liked those guys internally. Do you think it would be mystifying?

I don't think it would be mystifying. I think he showed me a little to nothing throughout training camp when I was observing and throughout the preseason games where we saw him play. But don't see him in the meeting room. Don't see how he prepares. We don't see those interactions the coaches have with him. To me, it would be something that would make a lot of sense for them to look externally. But again, we're talking about the margins and I don't want to get into a big debate about it. don't want to spend too much time.

No, I know. I'm just, Logan Woodside has been here. And so it, you know, I think. I don't see those guys is very different at this point. That's the point,

right? Is Ritter's similar to what they had in Woodside last year and he's younger and maybe they like him a bit more. So, but yeah, let's, let's keep it moving. Wouldn't be shocked if it's Ritter on the practice squad for sure,

though. We'll see. Maybe a team is interested. I think of anything that canceled any team that's going to bring him on, their active roster. But let's dive in because there's going to be a lot of back and forth, I think, that it has nothing to do with the third quarterback on this, well, in the building at least. Yeah, the first one that I think gets really interesting from a, well, they surprise us perspective,

is the next position on my list, tight end. Mike Kosicki, Drew Sample, Noah, Tanner Hudson, I think are on the team. And I don't think there's any real mystery there. None of those guys played in the preseason finale while Cam Grandy played a good amount and Tanner McLaughlin played a ton. Tanner McLaughlin is not going to make the team, but wouldn't surprise me if they wanted him on the practice squad at all. Cam Grandy is a guy that right now I have on the outside looking in on that initial

53, but what do you think? I mean, is this one where when we get to offensive line is where it's so hard for me on the offensive side, James? Like, is there a 10th guy worth keep it that they feel like they have to keep versus one of these other spots for those a guy they really like. And that's what it came down to for me when I was doing this projection. It's like, it's not Cam Grandi versus Tanner Hudson. It's Cam Grandy versus any of these offensive linemen that probably make it to the

practice squad that you probably are trying to replace anyway. And so I had him making, I had Cam making it. I agree with you on Tanner McLaughlin. No chance. No offense sealed that. And he was always a long shot anyway. But it really is going to be a battle of Cam versus these potential 10th offensive linemen and some guys that are really thought highly of, at least in the Bengals fan base spear,

how they look at him, whether it's a Seth McLaughlin. It's someone like that who I think is on the outside looking in, right? But that could be the decision. Is someone like that Jalen Coker, or not Jailen. Coaker, but Andrew Coker. Jalen Coaker is the receiver for the Panthers. But those are the type of decisions that the Bengals are trying to make now and are talking through now. And what I came back to, and the reason why I went with Grandy to tie back to tight ends is I think they like Randy. They believe in him and like what he brings. And even if you do have to cut him in a few days, making him survive that

first wave might be the best strategy versus going the other way because it wouldn't shock me one bit if he gets plucked because I do think he's put some good film out there. And was active for the Bengals late last year in a role, carved out a roll in the regular season before they added Noah Fant, he was working with the ones in a number of packages. And then Noah Fant kind of took over that role. and they're using him in multiple ways. But the interesting thing to me about Grandi, I think, is, and they kept five tight ends on the initial 53 last year,

Tanner McLaughlin being the fifth last year. McLaughlin was inactive all year. Grandi could have a special team's role, but are you activating five tight ends? Because Tanner Hudson, Drew Sample, those guys also have had and will have special teams roles. Drew Sample will have a special team's role regardless. Tanner Hudson has had a special teams role last year in this preseason, Cam Grandi.

Big special teams role. So like all three of those guys contributing on special teams as well, I think does make it interesting. Brandy did make it through waivers last year. And then we've seen the growth from him both in regular season games. And I think in this preseason, I think that one's really interesting. I have it at four just because I kind of defaulted to four after we saw Cam Graham Randy play in that final preseason game, but it wouldn't surprise me at all if that is a decision.

In no small part, because like you said, we're going to see this roster change, I think, more than normal after the initial cut down. I think there are so many spots where there are waiver priorities or otherwise, you know, free agent acquisition priorities for this team, where they're not going to be happy with their depth or they might have injuries that I think we're going to see a lot of changes. has come after that initial cut down. And we always do. We always give that disclaimer,

but it feels like that is more than normally the case this year. Because of the positions that they look, I mean, internal, inside, both tackle and guard spot when it comes to offensive line, defensive tackle is high on their list. Safety, not shockingly going to be on their list. Like, that's four spots where you're looking at it and you're like,

oh. So, yeah, this initial one, they may decide to hold on to that extra lineman or the other way. They may say, let's let them go because we know we're going to be making moves here anyway and we believe in player X or player Y. And maybe I'm reading it wrong when it comes to Cam Grady. Maybe it's somebody else. But I do think, I think you're right that they want to.

I think internally they certainly want to flip over roster spots. And this might not be exact, but like 50 through 53. They would ideally add a few players to bolster their depth in the back end of the roster. We'll obviously see if they do that, but we have plenty of positions we haven't hit on, including the offensive line. We've hinted at it, but let's get to the offensive line. And then wide receiver should be pretty quick as well. We'll get to those coming up next.

Today's show is brought to you by Fandul in August 26th, Tuesday. So Cut Down Day is also Fandul Futures Day. new holiday for football fans who live for bold predictions in preseason hunches. Maybe you think that the Bengals led by Cam Grandi are going to be just dandy and win the AFC North for the first time since 2022. Well, you can wager on that. Well, maybe you think that, oh, well, the Bengals, they're going to handle business and make it all the way to Super Bowl 60.

Well, Fando Future's Day is perfect for you because for just 24 hours, Fando is giving you deals on NFL season predictions, whether you're calling for your MVP, a long-shot division winner are ready to crown the Bengals Super Bowl champs before week one starts. This is your moment. Visit Fandall today and download the Fandall app and start planning your futures bets now because futures day is one day and one day only. Fandle play your game. Let's get to the offensive line, Jake, because I think they go hand in hand. A lot of people, especially in the past, it's like how many receivers, how many tight ends. This year I think it's tight ends and offensive line and how they balance each other out. Do you have 10? And if so, what, what's the back end of that room look like for you?

This is the biggest struggle for me putting together this roster was convincing myself, I think they're going to want to keep 10 and then trying to figure out the ninth and 10th guys that are worth keeping. I'll let you know which guys I kept in just a second. Really quick, want to remind people, we've got a survey that we'd really appreciate it if you took some time to check out the Lockdown Listener Survey. You can check it out at Lockdown Podcast.com slash survey. You fill it out, answer some questions about what you like, what you don't like, answer questions about our advertising.

You'll have a chance to win one of $10, $100 Amazon gift cards. Again, you can check it out at Lockdownpodcast.com slash survey. And there will be a link in the show notes a chance to win that $100 Amazon gift card. So when I was looking at the 10 guys, there's eight that are clear cut to me. Orlando Brown, Dylan Fairchild, Ted Carris, Lucas Patrick. of Marius fans. Those guys are starting. Cody Ford, Jalen Rivers, abundantly clear to me. I think Matt Lee showed that he is still the guy we think he is, an athlete that they don't have elsewhere on the team right now. Looks different moving than anyone else on this offensive

line. I think he did enough. I hope he did enough that is unambiguous there. There's a world where Matt Lee isn't active on game days, depends on what kind of mix of backups they want, and that was part of what I was thinking about here. But after you get past those guys, it's, did Jackson Kirkland do enough? He didn't have a very good preseason, but we know they love him.

Devin Cochran had a good start to the preseason, played in meaningful football games for them in their regular season last year, and played well against Denver, notably. I think they liked Devin Cochran. So Devin Cochran's won. Even though he's hurt, I don't know what's going on with him

from an injury perspective. I agree with you, by the way. I have Devin as well. And I think kind of like Lee, they've been trying to nurse him along and protect him more so than get him out there because he's battling for a spot. That last one, Jackson Kirkland, Andrew Coker, I know that some Seth McLaughlin fans really think that should be Seth McLaughlin. I don't see them rostering three centers. I just think that's a bridge too far for center only guys when they value versatility so much.

Jaylon Rivers can play some tackle for you in a pinch. Cody Ford obviously can play inside and outside. I ended up landing on Andrew Coker here, but this is the flimsyest of flimsy projections for me that I just have a really hard time feeling great about. And also my level of confidence that the 10th lineman actually sticks after waiver claims, not very high. A couple things here. One, you could have nailed it with Coker.

I think he's played played pretty well. Maybe Cochran starts out on a list and they go that route if his injury is worse than the Bengals have I don't want to say let on, but we don't have injury reports, but you know, you kind of downplay things. Maybe.

And so there's multiple ways to go here. I think it's really tough when you start to look at that room to say, to make this projection because we just expect them to add. Maybe that is, Alton Reisner. Maybe that is someone else. You mentioned that the possibility of Matt Lee being inactive, yeah, I mean, if Lucas Patrick, if they feel comfortable with him serving as a guy that

can play center in a pinch and be their backup center in starting guard, but there's risk in that too. So it's an interesting room right now that could really use one more interior alignment and one more offensive tackle that can give you tackle depth. And that's why I went with Cochran. That's why I think, because I think they'll just trust him more than these other guys. And however the room looks, Tuesday at 4 p.m., I would be surprised if by Thursday's practice it looks the same.

Maybe it will, but it just feels like there's a move. And I think that's why it's so hard to predict, because I don't know what it is. We don't know what it is. They don't know what it is at this point. but it's going to be something or it should be something. And if not, then I agree with you. I think Koker might be that 10th guy because he gives you some tackled depth.

And they really don't have that, even though they're semi comfortable with Cody Ford. I think their comfort level in Cody Ford is what makes us tricky because when you're talking about them adding a guy, if they add a guy that is adult and Risner level, like meaningful enough that he's either going to slot in as an immediate backup or backup plus or eventually push for a starting job, they're only activating eight linemen on game days. So that pushes someone off the active list. And if you're active guys right now are those starters plus Cody Ford, Matt Lee, Jalen Rivers, that's a reasonable group of guys to be active on game day. You'd like them to be better at right guard for sure.

But I think Lucas Patrick was better in that final preseason game. I think that the issue there more than anything is probably injury stuff. He's been dealing with stuff this preseason. So it's one of these spots where, again, we've been talking about it for months, would like to see them make a move. And then it's a question of like, okay, does that mean Jalen Rivers is now inactive on game days until there's an injury that forces them to move down the depth chart? That's fine.

You know, maybe Jailen Rivers needs some time to cook and develop. But right now, if your backups are Matt Lee, who's center only, and Cody Ford and Jalen Rivers, who they feel like maybe both of those guys have guard, tackle, flex. You probably want a guy that's more of a true tackle. And that's where like the active bit gets interesting. Like maybe it is Matt Lee, Cody Ford, Devin Cochran. Or maybe it's Cody Ford, Jaylon Rivers, Devin Cochran because they feel like Lucas Patrick can kick into center. Then they have a guy that is a pure tackle in Devin Cochran. They probably like Cody Ford more. So they're probably not considering that, something I'd be considering because I don't love Cody Ford to tackle.

But I mean, we're talking about the ninth lineman on the roster. that point. For sure. And this is, honestly, it's the biggest question for me is how they, they shore up this room and solidify it. I believe they viewed a guy like Reisner as a Cordell Volson replacement, a guy who could be your, your Lucas Patrick backup. We'll see if that deal gets done. If not, they need one. They need a guy that can give them some depth there because Lucas Patrick has been dinged up multiple times. They're clearly more confident in him than the internet, which is fine. I think he's been better than the consensus says on the internet.

At the same time, it's August, and we've seen him nicked up multiple times, and he wears multiple braces, and he shows his age and looks his age. And so guess what? He's probably going to get dinged up. And what you have behind him, as of now, that means Jalen Rivers. I would say. And if he's not ready, then you're in a world of trouble. Maybe he is ready. Maybe you stumble into it. Maybe it works out. But you would want another option there. And so maybe it is a swing tackle that you're confident in. It's really hard to find. And then that option is Cody Ford. Or maybe it's not.

And it's just a true depth piece at guard. Regardless, they need to add at least one guy to this room that fits the description of depth piece at guard or quality backup guard or a guy that can play the tackle spot. I think it is interesting that RIS are still out there, haven't seen any movement for him since he visited Cincinnati, suggests that there's just not much of a market for him and he thinks he's worth more than what he's been offered. If Seattle is interested, if Pittsburgh is interested, if all these teams are interested, none of these offers apparently are good enough for him to take them at this point.

So we'll see how that plays out. At wide receiver, James, I think this one's quick and easy. So let's knock this one out before we get to the defense, Jamar Chase, Higgins, Andre Yosevosh, Charlie Jones, Mitch Tensley. And I guess it's not quite so easy because I don't know what's going on with Jermaine Burton. Jermaine Burton is six, whether he is destined for a list or not. It's a question, whether he is active on game day for backup return duties

or not is a question, but those are the six of wide receivers. Yeah, he's a roster lock. There's no world where Jermaine Burton isn't on this team, barring some really unforeseen trade, and I haven't heard anything of that nature. I'm just kind of hedging the bed a little bit. But yeah, they're not cutting Jermaine Burton, put it that way. And so, yeah, maybe he has to go on a list because of that knee.

Or maybe he was just a little nicked up and it wasn't that serious, and he's going to be good to go. But Jermaine Burton is going to be in the building. after cut down. Let's get to the defense to finish up the show. That's 25 guys on offense, whether it's five tight ends or whether it's 10 offensive line and both of us, James, looking at 25 players on offense, which leaves 25 players on defense to figure out.

We'll discuss that and the specialist coming up next. This episode is presented by Yahoo Fantasy. The NFL season is right around the corner, and I have multiple fantasy drafts with Yahoo Fantasy this weekend. I mentioned Jalen Coker early in the episode, Jake. It's because true fantasy footballers know about Jalen Coker. And if you're like me and you've played Yahoo Fantasy for years and years and years, well, whether you're playing your Millionth League or you're just hearing about Yahoo Fantasy for the first time,

now's the time to get in on the fun. I'm playing on Yahoo Fantasy. You should too. And the season is about to kick off. Yahoo Fantasy is giving you so many more new ways to compete. And the way I'm most excited about is this new guillotine league option that Yahoo Fantasy has, where the lowest scoring team gets eliminated weekly until one team is left standing. And if you want to play instantly with friends, you can try the new draft with friends mode.

And obviously, if you prefer the classics, they have a head-to-head private league that I'm going to be in multiple of those. And no crew will no problem. They have public leagues as well that you can join hassle-free. The NFL season kicks off on September 4th. Don't wait, start your league now. Draft now at Yahoo! Fantasy.com slash locked on NFL. That's Yahoo! Fantasy.com slash locked on NFL. All right, James, let's dive into the defense.

Let's start in the trenches and work our way back. I think that there is some clarity at edge, at least to me. Trey Henderson, Shemarster, Joseph O'Sai, Miles Murphy, Camp sample will be the five guys. I know that there are all the questions about Trey Hendrickson, but there's no way he's not counting on the initial. 53, there's no list they can put him on, regardless of whether or not he has signed a new deal, he is under contract, he reported for camp, he will be part of the 53. The only question is really, is there a list designation coming for Cedric Johnson? That's the only question I have at Edge,

but I think the five guys that will be on the initial 53 are pretty clear cut. Any, anything to add there? Maybe Isaiah Thomas of the practice squad could be something they're hoping for, but anything else on Edge? No, not really. I think that. The Cedric Johnson one is the bummer. I think it will be list season there. Outside of that, I think it's really cut and dry. And in Miles, we haven't seen a lot of him, but his injury, it's definitely been a maintenance injury for him.

And so I don't expect him to go on any list. I think he'll be ready week one. That's where it gets interesting. And there are a number of interesting positions on this defense is defensive tackle, where BJ Hill, T.J. Slayton, Chris Jenkins, I think, are all playing a bunch. They're all in rotation. They're all effectively starters in some way, shape, or form,

although Chris Jenkins is probably behind BJ Hill, technically speaking. McKinley Jackson, I think, is safe. Played a lot in that final preseason game. And I went back and forth on this last one a lot. This was the second hardest, maybe third hardest for me. And then I just landed on Howard Cross being on the roster. And you see better than you can. hear the quote that we often throw around and is often thrown around with this team.

And we saw a lot of Howard Cross throughout training camp with the ones throughout this preseason. They really seem to like him. The Al Golden connection there. I personally will be looking for something else. But as far as the initial 53, that's where I landed, James. Yeah. Well, they're definitely in the market. So we'll see how this looks.

I think they'd certainly want to add. I'm with you on the first four. I do think McKinley makes it. So you got T.J. Hill, Jenkins, Jackson. And then I went with Taven Brian. And I think Taven Brian is someone when they signed him we were interested in. And he gives them some pass rush juice. I know they like Howard Cross.

I also think Howard Cross is going to make it to the practice squad. And Taven Brian is not. I don't think he will put it that way. I don't think he'll want to necessarily. and maybe they're fine with that. But I think initially, if you want the best defensive line you can have, as you're mixing and matching and shuffling and reshuffling the deck, that's the way to go.

Because who's going to help you more in Cleveland if you need them to help you? Well, it would probably be Tavin-Bron. So I would go with Brian and see if you could get crossed to the practice squad. And honestly, I'm not sure either guy is on the 53-man. roster when the season kicks off in Cleveland. We'll see. But I certainly think the Bengals are going to be looking at defensive tackle over the next few days.

That's got to be the top priority for them. Yeah. If it's not, then this is one of those. We like the guys in the building where it's like, what do you guys? What do you mean? I think it is really, I think that that's pretty obvious. Like they have three guys and then there's a huge drop off, I think, in the minds of

the coaches because everyone else played a bunch in that final preseason game. I personally would lean Tavenen Brian over Howard Cross. I just can't see, I couldn't get myself to see the Bengals seeing it that way. Let's summarize it that way. And so because of what we've seen from their affinity for Howard Cross throughout this preseason throughout training camp, that's where I landed. But like you said, this is one where I think they're going to be attacking it

in some way, shape, or form after the cuts. and we'll see if they have any successful waiver claims there. Let's go backwards from the trenches to linebacker where there are four very clear-cut choices in Logan Wilson and Demetriusite, Orrin Berks, and Barrett Carter. I don't think anyone has any surprises there. And then honestly, flip a coin between Joe Giles Harris and Shaka Hayward. Both of those guys' captains in preseason games

and preseason game two for Giles Harris and preseason game three for Shaka Hayward. They played 15 snaps each in that. final preseason game before the rest of the linebacker room finished the rest of that game. I thought this was Joe Giles Harris before or Giles Harris. I'm saying it both ways now. It's Giles. It's Giles. I just looked it up.

Shout out the Duke. Duke University had a nice video on him. So both these guys like essentially are the same player in many ways. I'm sure they have like different skill sets or whatever. But in terms of the way they're being used in terms of special teams role, flip a coin to me. I landed on Giles Harris. Wouldn't be surprised to see it be Shaka Hayward, would be surprised to see it be six

linebackers. Yeah, I agreed. I don't care how much you like linebacker, you don't need six of them, unless they're all awesome. In the special team part of it, most of these guys, like, yeah, you may lose one of them,

but I think you've got to cap out at five here. Maybe they go six, but I will say this, if they go six, if they do, there's no way they stuck the season with six. That's a huge flag to me that, all right, well, we're doing this because we don't love Taven Brian and we're definitely weren't going to keep him. We think Howard Cross is going to make it to the practice squad, and we know we're

going to add defensive tackle help. Maybe it's that cut and dry. So, okay, fine. If the initial one has six, I would still be surprised. I think it's five. Joe Giles Harris. We agree there. JGH.

JG.H. gets the uh gets that out and makes the team flip a coin you know that's really how i feel about that one there there's no clear information to me on the outside looking in that that really differentiates those guys at corner i think this one's pretty straightforward too camp taylor britt dachsh newton dj turner marco wilson dj ivy i think are the six i think that they have they they feel like they have enough versatility to play slot in dax and josh newton that they don't feel like they need to keep on the 53 one of Braylon Lux or Jalen Davis. And I do think Jalen Davis is ahead of Braylin Lux.

I think the third preseason game demonstrated that pretty clearly. But I don't see them keeping seven here. Did you have anything different in mind? No, I don't know who's ahead between Davis and Lux. I think that they really wanted to see more of Lux and give him some snaps and they like him. But I think he's destined for the practice squad initially. here. Same thing with Jalen Davis. They know him. They like him, but he's not beating out

Marco Wilson or DJ Ivy. They really like those guys. And they like what they have in Dax and Josh Newton in the nickel, like you said. So no, we're spot on here with the six, which takes us to safety. And I think safety is pretty intriguing. There's three obvious ones, Gino Stone, Jordan, Battle, Tyson, Anderson. All right, Jake, who you got? You got Dejan Anthony or PJ Jules or neither? I was persuaded by myself to land on PJ Jules here. Dejan Anthony's injury is the big wrench here. And it could be that Dejohn ends up on season ending IR.

I don't know. I don't think his injury is severe enough for that. But if they don't want to use an IR return spot on him, which is a consideration, they only get two of those to cut down and they count for two of their eight. I think Cedric Johnson is getting one. don't know what's going on with Jermain Burton. Maybe it's an IR return for Dejan, but maybe they just wave him and see what happens.

I don't know that he would be somebody that they would want to use that IR return spot on, James. It's unclear to me. But yeah, because of the special teams' contributions, PJ Jules acquitted himself as a good special teamer, and because of the way he played in that last preseason game, that I think being a competition with Dejohn, I ended up on PJ Jules here,

but again, this is a spot where it wouldn't surprise be one bit if they go out of guy. Yeah, it's funny. I went with PJ Jules for the main reason is because it's like, all right, well, who can be Tyson Anderson is safety three.

He's the guy that's coming off the bench. I think at either position, if battle gets hurt or if Gino gets hurt, that's who they're rolling with. And so who can give you the most on special teams when you need it? And I think that is PJ Jules. I think they trust him far more than Dejan Anthony in that role.

The injury aside, I don't think the injury is that severe. Maybe it is. Maybe I've, the reevaluations led it to be more severe. I don't think it is. But I also think that PJ Jules has outplayed Dejan Anthony. Tyson Anderson certainly outplayed Dejan Anthony. He didn't even play in the preseason finale. So don't be shocked at all if they go with PJ Jules.

But I ultimately, and we've said it, it's a broken record. but I really think they're looking at safety. And I wonder how high up the poll they're willing to go to address safety. Are you willing to go after some of the names that have been discussed in the past? Or is it as simple as you try to find someone that's cut on waivers? I think they'll look at both. They'll consider both and talk about both. Safety is certainly going to be a topic over the next few days at Paycor Stadium.

Yeah, I agree with that. On special teams, the only one up for grabs is long snapper, Ryan Rico will punt. Evan McPherson will kick. You can default to Caledatamedis. It was a neck-and-neck race for those guys. We talked about it after the game. Evan McPherson said you didn't notice a difference with either long snapper, and I guess if they're the same, you just keep the one that you know better.

I don't know how you make a determination here. I'm sure it's not the same. I'm sure Darren Simmons is differentiating these guys somehow internally, but to us on the outside, it's hard to parse. Again, similar to that fifth linebacker spot, not a whole lot separating them to us on the outside. It hasn't been, and it wasn't like the punter battle in years past, right? I was hoping it would be, and it would be this competition that we could kind of hint at and talk about. Haven't been able to.

But I'm going with Willie Wagner, William Wagner, with a shock, W.W. But you're right, flip a coin. But why not go with the guy that's just racing downfield? And I know Cal did the same thing, but wouldn't shock me at all if Wagner gets the job. Yeah, both of those guys in and around numerous tackles in punt coverage. They had four opportunities in punt coverage each in that final preseason game, a lot of punting for the Bengals. Good look at how those long staffers were getting downfield in punt coverage.

But 25 on offense, 25 on defense, three on special teams, clear waiver priorities on the offensive line where the 10th guy or the last guy very much in question, I think at safety as well, defensive tackle as well, where the last defensive tackle, very much in question, the last safety, I think very much in question. And we'll see where they surprise us. I think there's always a surprise, but this year more than most,

it feels like the last few spots on this roster are destined to be turned over. And you can only hope so that they shore up some of these spots with proven guys or guys that they believe in that could come in and help them. A few years ago, they had three waiver claims and they filled out the back end. They are not going to be afraid to put claims in on guys. So buckle up because just because we see that and we're going to react to the initial 53 tomorrow after Zach talks on Tuesday, Tuesday, early evening, Eastern time. But my goodness, Jake, could it look much? much a different 24 hours later would not shock me one bit if it does. Yeah, like you said, the question is how high up they shoot in some of these

replacements. So they look for some established players that are going to push other guys down the depth chart? Are they just looking for guys to come be that last spot on the depth chart? Obviously, we have our preference for making the team better in some way, shape, or form by pushing others down the depth chart. But we will be here for you, no matter what the Bengals do with the analysis you need, as the Bengals are trying to figure things out heading into this 2025 season

with the roster that feels a little top-heavy, needs a little bit of work on the edges to feel better about the depth. But until after the cutdown, like James mentioned, thanks for listening to this episode of the Lockdown Bengals podcast. Hoodei, and have a good one.