CTB is only entering Year 3, but he’s one of the vets in the Bengals’ young cornerback room.
The Cincinnati Bengals secondary struggled in 2023. Inexperience at safety and injuries to corners plagued the group all season, but from those struggles emerged Jordan Battle, while Cam Taylor-Britt emerged as one of the best young cornerbacks in the AFC.
Now that CTB is entering Year 3, he’s taking on more of a leadership role, something he’s comfortable with now that he’s one of the older guys in the locker room, according to Dayton Daily News’ Laurel Pfahler.
“The pressure is on now,” he said. “In (offseason) camp, you’re doing it up, and they are pushing us every which way, and being a vet in the room, I’m able to voice my opinion a lot more, push everybody else to be the best they can be.”
CTB will look to anchor one side of the field while Hilton works in the box as the team’s slot corner. On the other side DJ Turner will likely take the team’s starting snaps. Other than Hilton and backup slot corner Jalen Davis, CTB has by far the most experience. Behind he and Turner are DJ Ivey, Allan George and Dax Hill, who recently moved to corner from safety.
CTB has gone from one of the youngest faces in the room to one of the oldest in a relatively short period of time.
“The development is kind of crazy,” he said. “Two years is a long time but it doesn’t seem like a long time. I’ve learned so much in those two years and I believe my teammates can attest to that. Just maturity on and off the field has gotten a lot better. I was able to see a lot on the field and deal with people off the field, just getting my life together. It’s been a huge difference these last two years.”
With more experience at the safety position, thanks to the return of Bell and signing free agent Geno Stone, CTB, Turner and Hilton will look to get the secondary back to form and hopefully help the team return to the Super Bowl.