The Cincinnati Bengals host an annual media luncheon each year to kick off the start of a new season, and this year they made a slight tweak to the event.
Team owner Mike Brown wasn’t a part of the media circuit that he’s typically led since he took over as president in 1991. This event previously served as one of the few times fans could hear from the Bengals’ owner.
Brown was present for the luncheon on July 27 and presented the Paul Brown Excellence in Coaching Award to Evan Dreyer of Anderson High School at the conclusion of the event. However, he didn’t talk to reporters due to the Bengals changing their cadence and process of when they make key executives available to the media.
The event certainly had a different feel to it without Brown
addressing the media, but the Bengals still made head coach Zac Taylor and director of personnel Duke Tobin available. Offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher and defensive coordinator Al Golden were also present and took questions at the event.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the Bengals’ media luncheon.
Bengals expecting full participation, not anticipating any contract drama
For the first time in a few years, the Bengals are entering a training camp without a looming contract negotiation gone sour over their heads. From Jessie Bates in 2022 to Ja’Marr Chase in 2024 followed by Trey Hendrickson in 2025, the start of training camp recently has been littered with contract drama.
This won’t be the case this year, though. Cornerbacks Dax Hill and DJ Turner are entering the final years of their existing contracts. Running back Chase Brown is in the same boat.
Yet, all three players are expected to report and participate, said Taylor and Tobin.
“Everyone's motivated. … Everybody senses the opportunity that's in front of us for themselves and for the team, and so I don't anticipate any issues,” Tobin said.
Taylor echoed a similar sentiment, saying he “hasn’t heard anything different that would make me feel different” than his expectation that all of his players will report and practice when practice begins July 29.
Injury update, B.J. Hill’s expected timeline to return
The Bengals enter training camp in good shape from an injury standpoint. All but one projected starter will be healthy and ready to go to start camp. Cincinnati placed defensive tackle B.J. Hill on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list on July 25.
Hill’s injury doesn’t appear to be one that’s expected to keep him out for the entirety of training camp, said Taylor.
“He's doing well. … He's doing as well as we had hoped, and we'll just continue to take (it) day to day with him,” Taylor said.
What is the preseason plan for the defensive starters?
Cincinnati has several new faces playing key roles on defense this year. Defensive linemen Dexter Lawrence, Jonathan Allen and Boye Mafe all played in 2025 for other clubs.
Safety Bryan Cook was signed in free agency after a four-year stint with the Kansas City Chiefs. And the new-look defense doesn’t stop at those four players. The Bengals also drafted three defensive players this year in defensive end Cashius Howell, cornerback Tacario Davis and defensive tackle Landon Robinson.
With so many new players added to the group, is Taylor expecting to play the defensive starters more in preseason games?
Not necessarily.
“I would say I'm not going to say yes or no to how much they're going to play this year, but I think last year we were bringing along a lot of younger guys that were going to play key roles for us,” Taylor said. “Now you're adding a lot of guys that have played in this league for a long time, and they know exactly when you say something what you mean by it, even if it's just a different word that you're using. And so, I think that experience allows them to get up to speed significantly quicker than when you're bringing in a rookie or second-year player to a new scheme.”
The Bengals’ struggles on defense over the last two years have been well documented. Cincinnati has missed the playoffs in each of the last three seasons in large part due to the performance of the defense.
Internally and externally, the belief is that Cincinnati added enough talent this offseason to improve dramatically. The new players, combined with Golden and his staff having a full year of experience together, are what make Taylor optimistic about the upcoming season.
“I have a ton of confidence in what those guys bring to the table as a (coaching) staff, ton of confidence in what we've done on defense with the personnel, and just really excited to see those guys earn what they're going to do this year in training camp,” he said.
What will Joe Burrow’s workload look like in training camp/preseason?
The most important agenda item for the Bengals in training camp is trying to get through July and August without an injury to a key player, especially quarterback Joe Burrow.
Burrow was able to ramp up his workload in preseason games last season, and the Bengals got off to a faster start to the season. This was the main objective for Cincinnati heading into the 2025-26 season.
But things changed quickly when Burrow suffered a toe injury in Week 2 that sidelined him for majority of the season. He was limited to eight games in 2025.
As he gears up for his seventh NFL season, Burrow is healthy and eager to get back on the field. Taylor once again must find the right balance for Burrow as far as getting him as many reps as he needs but also protecting him.
In three of Burrow’s first six seasons, he’s needed surgery for different injuries. He also suffered a calf injury in training camp ahead of the 2023 season that significantly altered his preparations for the year.
Taylor and Burrow will stay in constant communication about what his workload will and should look like to ensure the best chance of him staying healthy over the next month.
“He's got to be at his best for us to be at our best, and so there's always dialogue there that I'm always interested in hearing,” Taylor said. “I'm never setting (in) stone how exactly I'm going to do everything, and so I want that feedback from guys like him and (offensive linemen) Orlando (Brown) and Ted (Karras) and the guys on defense, and I always want that feedback, and that'll take shape as we go through training camp."
Here’s why the Bengals didn’t add more competition to the linebacker room
After a season of ups and downs for linebackers Demetrius Knight Jr. and Barrett Carter, the Bengals chose not to add any new linebackers in free agency or the NFL draft.
This decision has been a popular topic for pundits and fans to discuss. Carter and Knight struggled in their first year, and the Bengals are expecting improvement in Year 2.
The Bengals are comfortable with Knight and Carter as their starting linebackers heading into this season, and here’s why.
“We believe in the group that we have,” Tobin said. “We added competition in other areas, and it's hard to say you've got to have established vets at all 22 starting spots. You have to develop guys within, and we have guys that can develop, and we have guys we believe in, and guys that played a lot early in their career that are now comfortable in the scheme, comfortable with their teammates, understand the NFL and how it goes, and so we feel good about that group right now.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What we learned from Duke Tobin, Zac Taylor as Bengals camp begins
