The Bengals are much deeper, and it showed in the preseason opener

Dexter Lawrence wasn’t planning to be the player who led the Cincinnati Bengals out of the tunnel on Thursday before the preseason opener. He knew that he would be going out for the coin toss as a captain, but the visual of the 350-pound symbol of belief, aggression and an all-in approach running out in front of the entire team at Paycor Stadium happened pretty naturally.

When it happened, Lawrence reveled in the moment.

“I like leading the troops,” he says. “A lot of roaring out there.”

Lawrence is the reason why expectations are back to such a high level for the 2026 Bengals. He has been a wrecking ball for all of training camp, proving himself ready to be the center of a Bengals’ defense that’s ready to rebound. Zac Taylor naming Lawrence, as well as Ted Karras, the game captains on Thursday was a reminder of how much Lawrence has already exceeded expectations with his play, his approach and his buy-in.

“That meant a lot,” Lawrence said about being a game captain. “Earning the respect of him and the players on the team, it’s exciting.”

Lawrence only played a pre-planned three snaps as the Bengals beat the Lions, 16-14. He spent most of the night on the sideline. He locked in on the defensive line.

“They held their own,” Lawrence said. “They made some negative plays. Got pressure. Forced some bad throws. They have the motor. They’re honing in on their technique. They played well.”

Lawrence is the tone setter for this Bengals’ season, a metaphor for Super Bowl hopes.

He had a lot to smile about when he watched the bulk of the game from the sideline. He saw a lot of pieces who can help this team get to where he’s trying to help lead it.

I’ve watched a lot of really bad preseason football over the course of Taylor’s head coaching tenure. They’ve played badly mostly because the depth was bad, even in 2021 and 2022. That’s not the case this season. On Thursday, even with four defensive backs out due to minor injuries, the Bengals showed that they’re a much deeper team than they’ve been in a while.

It wasn’t all perfect — the rain as well as some headset issues created some setbacks for the offense, the quarterback play wasn’t that good, there was a poor sequence before the half and there were a couple of players who struggled. But on the whole, the second and third teams continued to show why there’s more competition on the roster in this Bengals’ training camp than there has been in several years.

After the win over the Lions, Zac Taylor said that he’s starting to get excited about the team’s depth.

“A lot of guys got a lot of opportunities today to showcase their abilities,” Taylor said. “Some guys really rise and stand out.”

As the front office built the roster this year, the Bengals leaned much less on undrafted free agent rookies. There are only 10, the lowest number in years, and six of the 10 are running backs, linebackers and offensive linemen who barely touched the field on Thursday.

The Bengals didn’t need to fill spaces on the back of the roster this year with rookies whose only NFL experience would come in this training camp. They have so many more players who belong in an NFL training camp and deserve a real look.

Because they signed as many veterans as they did in free agency, Ced Johnson, Kris Jenkins, TJ Slaton, McKinnley Jackson, Josh Newton and the returning backup safeties all moved down the depth chart. Those players were on the field for some critical snaps in 2025. This year, the Bengals have a good enough roster to have them on the field for a ton of Week 1 preseason reps.

The draft bolstered the Bengals’ depth at receiver on the offensive line and gave them a defensive end in Cashius Howell who looks ready to make an immediate impact.

The Bengals also brought back a slew of veteran, back of the roster players (guys like Mitchell Tinsley, Cody Ford and Cam Grandy) who have shown flashes in recent seasons and the Bengals made a point to bring back.

It’s a deep team at just about every position (the exceptions are running back, offensive tackle and linebacker).

“We’ve got a lot of guys who can fly around and make plays as you saw today,” said DJ Ivey, one of the best breakout stories in camp. “I’ve gotten better. The whole secondary has. We’ve got to keep pushing each other to make plays and get better. I see a lot in this group. We’ve been doing it for the entire camp.”

Some highlights against the Lions were Cashius Howell executing a spin move to get into the backfield to split a sack with Kris Jenkins, Landon Robinson playing with his hair on fire, the backup offensive line posting a very impressive success rate in pass protection, Jack Endries catching a touchdown and also making three players miss in space on a different reception, Colbie Young and Dohnte Meyers making splash plays, Ivey breaking up a pass on a play he knew was coming based on the formation, Newton taking away a deep ball with great coverage, Bralyn Lux having a nice game and Ke’Shawn Williams giving the Bengals a huge kick return.

The vibe was very positive after Thursday’s win. Just about every position group contributed. Players who were competing for the final spots on the roster like Endries, Newton and Robinson showed exciting flashes.

The defensive line, by far the deepest pass rush that the Bengals have had in Taylor’s tenure in Cincinnati, was the star of the show.

“We’re definitely deep,” Howell said. “It showed tonight. We had a lot of plays made. It shows we’re deep.”

On his half-sack, Howell said that he wasn’t planning a spin move. But when he felt a chip from the tight end, he used his instincts. “That’s kind of what I’m able to do,” he said.

Jenkins ended last season as a starter. Now, because of how much depth the Bengals have added, he’s competing to be DT5. He made the most of his reps on Thursday with five tackles, a sack and a tackle for loss.

Robinson had a sack as well as a key pressure that nearly resulted in a safety. He has had a quiet camp, but he really popped in the preseason opener against the Lions.

“I played to the scheme,” Robinson said. “My pass rush was pretty good tonight. I got back there a few times. I worked my technique, my push pull and used my quickness to make an impact on the game.”

This had to have been the best preseason game we’ve seen in many years from the Bengals’ second team offensive line, especially in the segment where the top-five projected backups were in the game. Sixth-round pick Brian Parker made a few splashy blocks, and the entire unit was impressive overall in pass protection.

“It was some good (stuff) out there,” Parker said. “For my first NFL preseason game, I feel pretty good about it. We were doing a great job in pass pro. We’re starting to gel.”

It was the first-team offense that didn’t click. The Lions’ backups did a nice job to take away some deep passing opportunities as Joe Burrow took a drive-killing sack in the first quarter, and Orlando Brown Jr. had a bad rep on third down on the following drive. The first-team offense will be just fine.

What was different on Thursday was the upside that the Bengals’ backups are showing.

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One more good story from Thursday night’s game.

From a depth chart perspective, the surprise of the game was seeing linebacker Swayze Bozeman in with the second team (ahead of Shaka Heyward and Joe Giles-Harris). Bozeman went on to make a couple of really nice plays, including a pass breakup and a tackle for loss.

“Coach (Mike) Hodges has really worked hard with us,” Bozeman said. “Not just mastering your own craft, but being able to read the offense and have some independence on our side to move the front. Him giving us that range to do that gives us confidence. They trust us. That autonomy brings a lot of confidence to the group.”

Swayze (it’s a family name. His great uncle is named Swayze, and his son is Swayze Jr.) Bozeman has a heck of a story.

“Not a normal journey to the NFL,” Bozeman said. “Kind of crazy.”

He grew up in Flora, Mississippi, a town of 2,000 people. He spent the first two seasons of his college career, 2017-18, at Copiah-Lincoln Community College in Wesson, Mississippi. He then transferred to Southern Mississippi. Due to injuries and due to the COVID season, Bozeman was able to play five more seasons at his new school and totaled seven years in college.

He signed with the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent rookie in May of 2024 and spent most of that season on the practice squad. Then in the playoffs, he was elevated from the practice squad and was a core special teamer in each of the Chiefs’ three playoff games in 2024, including the Super Bowl loss to the Eagles.

Bozeman went on to spend training camp with the Bears in 2025, ended up with the Giants during the season and played in six games.

Then in May, a very rare time for a player to be waived, the Giants waived Bozeman to open up room on their roster for an extra undrafted free agent. The Bengals claimed him right away in May. For most of the offseason, he has flown under the radar. He introduced himself against the Lions on Thursday.