Injury-riddled Bengals secondary finding hope with fresh faces, new roles

CINCINNATI (AP) — Even while five Cincinnati Bengals’ defensive backs are dealing with injuries, the secondary as a whole has taken a step forward over the first month of the season. The Bengals have the 13th-best scoring defense in the NFL this season, and one of the strengths of the unit has been its ability to take away the deep ball.

The Bengals kept up that trend last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars, one of the best offenses in the NFL, despite having five defensive backs playing new positions.

“I thought they rose to the challenge,” Taylor said. “I really did. I thought they filled in nicely. Guys played in different roles. Guys playing more of a role than they had in the past. That was encouraging to see the next-man-up mentality. Guys taking advantage of their opportunities in a lot of different areas on our team.”

Safety Bryan Cook (ankle), safety Kyle Dugger (quad), and cornerbacks Jalen Davis (hamstring) and Ja’Sir Taylor (hamstring) missed last week’s game with injuries. Safety Jordan Battle played through a hamstring injury.

Davis and Taylor are expected to return to the lineup for Sunday's game at the Miami Dolphins. Cook is questionable, while Duggar is out.

Special teamer PJ Jules and practice squad player Russ Yeast stepped up at safety and had their first meaningful defensive snaps as Bengals.

“It goes into the play calling and the coaches getting us ready,” Jules said. “They did a great job with that. Whoever is out there, we’re confident the coaches will get us ready.”

While missed tackles by Jules and Yeast resulted in important first downs for the Jaguars, they held their own on a day where Jacksonville scored just 22 points and didn’t connect on any deep passes.

“We had to rely on our technique and communication,” Yeast said. “We needed to be great communicators on the back end with new guys in key spots. We had to make sure we didn’t miss a beat.”

In the Bengals’ first game without Davis, Dax Hill moved from outside corner to the slot. It was the fourth time that Hill has had to change positions in his five-year NFL career, and he adjusted well to the new role.

“If anyone could go and gripe, it’s Dax,” cornerbacks coach Charles Burks said. “He has never griped. It’s up to us as coaches to sit back, think about what he does best and put him in positions to do that.”

With Hill moving positions, the Bengals used veteran DJ Ivey and rookie Tacario Davis to split the second outside cornerback spot opposite of DJ Turner. Ivey and Davis combined to allow one combined catch.

It was a significant step forward for Davis, who struggled through the first three games of the season.

“Big time growth out of Tacario,” Burks said. “Big time growth. I’m really excited about where he’s going.”

Davis has been leaning on advice from Turner and Hill, who have been in his position as rookies playing important coverage snaps.

“They were telling me to not overthink it,” Davis said. “Don’t think everything will be pitch perfect Day 1. It takes days. You have to crawl before you walk.”

Jalen Davis will miss at least two weeks with a hamstring injury. Zac Taylor hasn’t offered a timeline on Taylor. Cook and Dugger weren’t participating in practice at the start of this week. As a result, the depth in the secondary could be tested again this week.

Defensive coordinator Al Golden expressed confidence in that unit.

“Those guys really gave us an opportunity to win the game at the end of the day,” Golden said. “I was really proud of that. Keep moving forward. Keep learning. Fix the corrections we got to make and get ready for the next test.”

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