Bengals' Brown Jr. Under Fire | NFL News

0:00On September 7th, all right, let's talk about the Cincinnati Bengals heading into the new season. There's a lot of optimism, but one key player is already getting called out as a potential weak spot. ESPN's bin baby pointed to left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. as the biggest concern, noting he's still recovering from a broken leg he suffered back in. 2024, and needs to get back to his old form. The depth that tackle is also a question mark. If Brown Jr. or his back up, Amerius Mims go down, the team might be in trouble. They picked up Miles Hinton to try and fill that swing tackle roll, but it wasn't a clear competition during the preseason. Brown Jr. signed a big deal. Four years for $64 million, and even got an extension, pushing his career earnings over $100. $19 million. Last year, his performance numbers from pro football focus weren't exactly stellar, ranking pretty low among offensive tackles for a pass blocking, run, blocking, and overall grades.

1:01Despite those numbers, the team clearly believes in him, giving him that extension. However, there were some concerning moments in the preseason. During a game against the Lions, an undrafted rookie got past Brown Jr. and hit quarterback Joe Burrow. It's unclear if that play influenced the decision to rest starters in the following games. Redcoach Zach Taylor defended Brown Jr. saying he takes ownership when things go wrong, and that the whole team is looking for ways to improve. Protection. Hopefully, that russ has shaken off before their week one match-up against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That's your update from NFL News Today, powered by AI.