Cincinnati Bengals WR Andrei Iosivas Had a Hero Moment Stolen, But Something More Valuable Was Returned

CINCINNATI – On the Monday after a demoralizing 39-38 loss to the previously winless New York Jets, Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Andrei Iosivas was one of the few players milling about in a mostly empty locker room and suddenly found himself surrounded by cameras and microphones.

Reeling from failing to secure a couple of late passes, including one drop that would have put the team in position for a game-winning field goal attempt, Iosivas patiently answered every question about his hands, his continued struggles and his confidence.

Quarterback Joe Flacco walked past the scene after coming out of the training room.

He didn’t stop to listen to what kind of questions Iosivas was getting.

He already knew.

After the interview broke up, Flacco returned to Iosvias’ locker to check on the young receiver he’d known for all of two weeks.

“How are you doing?” he asked.

“I’m good,” Iosivas lied.

It wasn’t just the drops from 24 hours earlier that Iosivas was processing. There were three in Green Bay two weeks prior, and another catch he thought he should have secured against Pittsburgh four days later.

Compounding his own growing disappointment was the vitriol roaring at him online.

“After the Green Bay game, I’d never had to deal with that kind of hate before,” Iosivas said. “The hate was changing the image I had of myself in my own head.

“I felt like I was outside my body at times,” he added.

After the Jets game, the hate grew louder.

Iosivas retreated into himself and deleted all social media apps off his phone.

And an epiphany rose from the social retreat.

“I realized I don't have to care what other people think of me,” he said. “They don't see all the work that I do. They don't know what I go through. Why would I let other people's judgment of me affect the way I see myself?

“I just had to bring it back in, because I want it so much,” he added.

As soon as he let go of what was troubling him, he started holding on to passes.

Iosivas responded to the worst three-week stretch of his career with one of his biggest – and certainly the most meaningful – games against the Bears.

He tied his career high with five receptions, including a 9-yard touchdown with 54 seconds left that should have been the game winner, should have been a the greatest moment of his career

But it was stolen by a Bengals defense that turned another victory into a second-consecutive infuriating loss, leaving Iosivas’ display of redemption a mere footnote eclipsed by the chaos of the collapse.

At least outside of the facility.

Inside the locker room and meeting rooms at Paycor Stadium, everyone knew how important it was for Iosivas to have that sort of performance.

And how validating it was for a coaching staff that stuck with him rather than turning instead to Mitch Tinsley, who, like Iosivas, has drawn praise for how hard he works and goes about his business and has made plays every chance he gets.

Offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher said Tinsley has given the coaching every reason to want to give him more playing time.

But the belief in Iosivas, and the willingness to stick with him is based on his body of work, which extends well beyond the limited opportunities and growing miscues during games.

“It’s easy to get caught up in the immediate of what just happened,” Pitcher said. “And it’s not that that’s unimportant. But over the course of time, you’ll make a lot of mistakes if you allow yourself to be consumed by that.

“So you factor that, but on the other hand you say ‘we trust this person’s character. We’ve seen the work he puts in. We trust what we’ve seen as far as hi play all through the offseason and training camp,” Pitcher continued. “That's the type of guy that you allow the opportunity to work through a rough patch because of all the things that he's made of.”

Flacco has been watching receivers occasionally drop his passes for 18 years.

In most cases, they’ve been guys he has banked endless hours of work with on the practice field, in meetings and in games.

He may not have even known Iosivas’ name when he was throwing to him in Green Bay, which was just five days and three practices after the Browns traded the veteran quarterback to the Bengals.

But he knew what Iosivas needed to hear when he approached him in the locker room the day after the Jets loss.

“You can see it on him that he wants it to get better and he wants to play well,” Flacco said. “You go up to him and a conversation happens. It’s all positive. I think a lot of him as a player. I really do. I think he’s a hell of a wide receiver.

“There’s reasons for things to happen that you don’t want to happen, and it can be hard to get out of that,” Flacco continued. “But it really has no weight on what we do going forward.”

Flacco made those comments on the Friday before the Bears game, then proved every word of them by targeting Iosivas seven times, one shy of his career high.

In addition to a couple of explosive receptions – one for 28 yards, another for 19 – Iosivas nearly had a second touchdown.

But a Bears defender nudged him out of bounds on the route, and Iosivas was unable to reestablish himself inbounds before catching Flacco’s pass along the back line of the end zone.

On the next play, Flacco threw his first interception since joining the team, and what looked like a big moment for Iosivas had dissolved.

But a touchdown pass to Noah Fant – one play after Iosivas’ 19-yard reception set it up – a few minutes later and an onside kick recovery gave the Bengals a chance to pull off what arguably would have been the most stunning comeback win in franchise history.

And it was Iosivas who thought he had delivered it to the city on a touchdown catch with just 54 seconds left.

“I remembered I yelled, 'I'm that F'ing guy. Don't f--k with me,’” Iosivas said. “That's how you've got to talk to yourself, because I am that guy."

The Bengals, of course, didn’t get the win.

And Iosivas didn’t get his hero moment.

But he might have received something even more valuable – perspective.

“Stuff happens sometimes. I’ve got to learn to let it go,” Iosivas said. “I’ve got to be like a Buddah. Maybe a slightly angry one.”