Bengals
Cincinnati brought back TE Mike Gesicki and got deals done with WRs Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins to create complete continuity on the offensive side of the ball. Bengals QB Joe Burrow talked about the importance of familiarity so they can build on the existing chemistry.
“I think we’re in a spot that we haven’t been before,” Burrow said, via Geoff Hobson of the team’s website. “Guys coming off a season healthy, getting all of our guys back. It’s been weird this offseason not having to really take a new guy that we’re counting on under my wing and trying to teach him what I’m looking at, what we want out of each play. That takes a lot of time.”
“Signing Mike back was big. Andrei coming back. We have all the guys in the wide receiver room back that we’ve already had all these discussions. So now you can take it to the next level and talk a little more in depth about those things and that’s just going to continue to make us better.”
Ravens
Ravens QB coach Tee Martin envisions new WR DeAndre Hopkins as someone who can pull down contested catches for QB Lamar Jackson.
“You’re speaking to trust,” Martin said, via ESPN. “[Hopkins is] a wide receiver that can play strong [with] big, strong hands that quarterbacks love. That’s a really good comfort level for a quarterback, when you can put the ball in the vicinity and trust that guy is going to make a play. So, we look forward to what that relationship is going to be like.”
Hopkins isn’t concerned about a set time frame in order to gain chemistry with Jackson.
“I don’t think it’s a [set] time frame,” Hopkins said. “A guy like Lamar, who’s a veteran quarterback, he’s played a lot of football. Myself, I play a lot of football. We see things differently, but I’ve had rookie quarterbacks that have taken longer. So, it differs.”
Hopkins will add veteran and playoff experience to a young Baltimore receiving core.
“He’s been in big games before,” Ravens HC John Harbaugh said. “He’s made plays in the big games. He knows how to make plays. There’s not going to be any situation that’s going to be too big for him.”
Steelers
Steelers WR Calvin Austin III is in line for a large role alongside WR D.K. Metcalf after the team sent WR George Pickens to Dallas. Metcalf outlined Austin’s twitchy and explosive profile when speaking about his excitement to line up across from each other.
“[Calvin Austin III’s] a jitterbug out there, but he’s explosive as heck,” Metcalf said, via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “Just looking forward to lining up with him for the rest of these last couple days of camp and then moving on to training camp, and then just starting to work off each other in different route concepts.”
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