![\"Cincinnati](\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/athletic\/uploads\/wp\/2025\/08\/13192748\/AP25206399115705-scaled-e1755130187843-1024x683.jpg?width=1920&quality=70&auto=webp\")
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The Cincinnati Bengals\u2019 offensive personality doesn\u2019t need much explanation.<\/p>\n
Joe Burrow. Ja\u2019Marr Chase. Tee Higgins. Chase Brown.<\/p>\n
Good luck.<\/p>\n
Head coach Zac Taylor runs one of the NFL\u2019s most pass-heavy offenses and does so unapologetically.<\/p>\n
And throughout the five seasons with Burrow leading a passing juggernaut, the team has churned out productive seasons at tight end, no matter who has lined up wearing a number in the 80s.<\/p>\n
The lessons learned in feeding C.J. Uzomah, Hayden Hurst, Tanner Hudson, Mike Gesicki and others were altered last season with the arrival of fourth-round pick Erick All. The Bengals discovered a weapon in running two tight ends and a toughness on the ground that helped marry the run and pass games more effectively. They found a way to amplify Gesicki\u2019s unique receiving skills.<\/p>\n
All of this made the Bengals\u2019 tight end room feel like it should have a curtain down the middle. On one side are Gesicki and Hudson, who are almost solely receivers. On the other are Drew Sample and Cam Grandy, almost solely blockers. They\u2019ve since added Noah Fant to find a role closer to the middle ground, though he\u2019s predominantly a weapon as a receiver.<\/p>\n
\u201cTight ends come in all shapes and sizes, and our room this year really is a testament to that,\u201d tight ends coach James Casey said.<\/p>\n
It looks like a challenging task to combine all these skill sets to create a diverse group capable of keeping the defense guessing.<\/p>\n
Taylor doesn\u2019t see it that way.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been fun,\u201d he said. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say challenge; it\u2019s been really fun to find ways to utilize a lot of guys who continue to earn opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n
The evolution of how the Bengals have utilized the group comes from years of lessons, and with Fant\u2019s arrival, another injection of creativity is in progress.<\/p>\n
A team with multiple weapons on the outside can also have multiple personalities thanks to this diverse collection of skill sets and schematic twists.<\/p>\n
Third-year receiver Andrei Iosivas calls it \u201cdoing a Mike Gesicki.\u201d Otherwise known as the art of improvising a route and turning it into something else based on the coverage and chemistry with Burrow.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you watch Mike, a lot of his routes are feel-the-zone routes,\u201d Iosivas said. \u201cHe\u2019ll kind of change his route. We give him a lot of freedom in the offense just because he is so crafty, and he knows where the other guys are in the route concepts. He does a lot of his own stuff. Everyone in the room is learning from him and how he does that kind of stuff. Obviously, not everyone has the freedom he has, but he\u2019s the best in the league at that, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n
That level of trust from the quarterback ends up getting your name called out as a priority signing, as it did when Burrow asked for \u201cMike G\u201d to get paid along with Higgins, Chase and Trey Hendrickson back in February.<\/p>\n
Gesicki\u2019s role in the offense is interesting, as he\u2019s the most pass-heavy tight end in the NFL. He occasionally spent time in receiver meeting rooms in previous stops, but he hasn\u2019t done that this year. That\u2019s largely because he learns all the receiving pieces he needs in the full offense meetings.<\/p>\n
Gesicki was on the field last year for 502 snaps, and 429 were pass plays. He stayed in as a pass protector just 11 times.<\/p>\n
Gesicki essentially serves as the third receiver behind Chase and Higgins, after finishing third on the team with 65 receptions for 665 yards last year. The issue that has followed him throughout his career is being an offensive tell, something the Bengals are trying to avoid.<\/p>\n
His presence on the field last year meant an 85 percent chance of a pass.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s going to be percentage tendencies, no doubt,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cBut if you can find ways to get to that 20 percent or cast doubt, then you can\u2019t just hone in. You don\u2019t want anything to be 100 percent, that\u2019s what you don\u2019t want, but when everything\u2019s in that 10 to 20 percent, then there\u2019s going to be a doubt in your mind.\u201d<\/p>\n
The same theory applies to Hudson, whose awareness level in the pass game made him an instant match to this offense. He caught 58 passes and two touchdowns over the past two seasons, but after questions about sticking on the roster emerged, he has excelled with another productive training camp and a huge preseason opener with two touchdowns. That included a tough run-after-catch score on a checkdown from Burrow.<\/p>\n
\nOnly took one drive for Joe Burrow to lead the @Bengals<\/a> to a TD \ud83d\udc05<\/p>\n
Stream CINvsPHI on @NFLPlus<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/msZwVQwK2l<\/a><\/p>\n
— NFL (@NFL) August 7, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n