Bengals Mailbag: Joe Burrow's offseason workouts, the linebacker room and backup quarterbacks
CINCINNATI — There's a ton of uncertainty surrounding the NFL season and the start of training camp, which is scheduled to begin in less than two weeks.
The only thing that I know for sure is that I'll be at training camp whenever it starts and AllBengals will have the latest news, interviews and more from Paul Brown Stadium.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding the start of the season, plenty of you asked great questions for this week's mailbag.
Thank you for sending me your questions. We will do this every week throughout the NFL season.
Feel free to post your questions in the community tab at AllBengals.com or leave a comment on a story. You can also tweet me your questions. If I don't get to them on here, I could also answer them on the Locked on Bengals podcast.
Without further ado, let's get to the mailbag!
Logan Wilson should have an important role early in the season. It's fair to expect the Bengals third-rounder to join Germaine Pratt on passing downs.
Josh Bynes was a great value signing. He's going to get plenty of playing time and he's the veteran leader in that linebacker room, but his presence won't keep Wilson off the field.
The Bengals really like Pratt. I'd be surprised if he wasn't in the mix all season long. The Bengals are hoping Akeem Davis-Gaither, Markus Bailey, Pratt and Wilson all become a part of their future at the linebacker position.
With the upgrades on the defensive line, the linebackers should be in a much better position to make big plays this season.
Bynes is going to start. It would be a big surprise if he isn't out there for the first snap of the season.
Both Pratt and Bynes are the likely starters, but like I mentioned above, it's fair to expect Wilson to get plenty of opportunities early in the season.
Davis-Gaither is a wild card. How is he going to fit in with the rest of the linebackers?His versatility makes him a nice chess piece for defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo. Creativity will be key in maximizing his contributions this season.
The trio of Pratt, Bynes and Wilson will likely get the most snaps early in the season, but Davis-Gaither might not be far behind.
The backup quarterback conversation is an interesting one. I was a bit surprised head coach Zac Taylor said the Bengals were 'set' at quarterback shortly after the team released Andy Dalton.
Ryan Finley started three games last year and the coaching staff likes what they've seen from Jake Dolegala.
The real question here is how much would Joe Burrow benefit from having a veteran backup on the team? Would it help him to have Blake Bortles holding a clipboard on the sidelines rather than Dolegala or Finley?
Most of you would probably say "yes," but much like the offensive line, the coaching staff believes in the quarterbacks they have on the roster.
"We're set," Taylor said in May. "We've got three young guys we really look forward to investing a lot of reps in. We think they have bright futures. We feel really good about where we're at right now."
Finley struggled in three starts last season. Dolegala had some flashes in the preseason, but plenty of players have flashed in exhibition games for the Bengals over the years. Preseason success doesn't always translate to regular season games.
How can anyone give them a grade, when no one knows what they are? No one believes Finley is a true NFL starter, but who am I to say he can't develop into a successful backup quarterback? He struggled in three starts. That doesn't mean his career is doomed. The same goes for Dolegala.
We have no reason to believe in either player, but it wouldn't be surprising if either one emerged as a legitimate backup.
If I had to give a number on a 1-10 scale, I'd give them a one — but that's because neither player has a track record in the league.
Finley and Dolegala both need reps and experience. Hopefully the only time they get either is on the scout team in practice and on the sideline before games when they're helping Joe Burrow warm up.
Giovani Bernard is a good player. Unfortunately, he isn't going to get many touches this season, assuming Joe Mixon and the rest of the Bengals' skill players stay healthy.
Bernard has had a total of 172 touches over the past two years, including 83 in 2019 (53 rushing attempts, 30 receptions).
That's what he will likely get this season, barring an injury. The Bengals' primary weapons on offense will be Mixon, A.J. Green and Tyler Boyd.
John Ross, Tee Higgins and Auden Tate will compliment the 'big three' with their talent.
Bernard is essentially in the third tier of targets with C.J. Uzomah and Drew Sample. That's no knock on any of those guys, but there are a lot of mouths to feed in this offense.
The eight-year veteran is capable of taking on a bigger load when necessary, but he won't be a major part of the game plan on a week-to-week basis. He's a compliment to Mixon, Green and the rest of the offense.
Sample's role should expand this season. With Tyler Eifert no longer on the roster, someone in the tight end room is going to have to step up.
Uzomah is as consistent as it gets, but the Bengals need Sample to play well this year. He's a capable blocker, which is certainly going to be valuable with the question marks on the offense line.
He sprained his ankle in the middle of last season, which put a damper on his rookie campaign.
"I was starting to really adjust to it. Obviously it's a big jump from college to the NFL," Sample told Dan Hoard on the Bengals Booth Podcast. "I was definitely getting more comfortable just seeing things. The game was starting to slow down a little bit."
He only appeared in 9.81 percent of the Bengals offensive snaps last season. That number could easily quadruple in 2020.
Sample will likely be the sixth or seventh option in the passing game, assuming everyone stays healthy. That's certainly a step up from where he was a year ago.
It's fair to expect him to be a regular contributor on offense this season.
On July 28 when training camp [hopefully] starts. They could get together beforehand, but there's so much uncertainty surrounding the start of camp.
Some have been critical of Burrow for not being able to get together with his teammates for a workout this offseason, but there's been so much unknown due to COVID-19. A month ago there were rumblings that the league may open facilities for an in-person minicamp in late June.
That didn't happen, but it could've prevented the Bengals players from planning in person workouts.
A.J. Green, Tyler Boyd, John Ross and Burrow have all talked about working out together this offseason.
Green is in Atlanta, Boyd is in Pittsburgh, Ross is in Los Angeles and Burrow is in Athens. Planning ahead, without knowing the NFL schedule is difficult, especially when players have to travel across the country to attend the workouts.
If they do get together, it could be similar to what Tate, Sample, Finley and others did last week at Moeller High School.
Maybe Burrow and company could travel to Cincinnati a few days before training camp to get some extra work in.
If that doesn't happen, then the first time they step on the field together will likely be July 28 — assuming camp starts on time.
