- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,263,801
- Reaction score
- 59
Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher said he doesn’t view it as a battle between Andrei Iosivas and Colbie Young for the No. 3 wide receiver position.
In his mind, there’s Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and then everyone else competing for roles behind them.
Iosivas has been the clear No. 3 the past couple of years, though, and is working to retain his share of those snaps. For the second time in three years, the Bengals drafted a wide receiver that could take a piece of that pie.
Young, a lengthy fourth-round draft pick this year out of Georgia, has been drawing a lot of attention with splash plays in training camp so far. While mainly playing with the second-team offense, he’s also gotten reps with Joe Burrow and the first-team offense and is taking advantage of every opportunity to show what he could bring.
“There’s a handful of instances where they’ve done some really impressive things, and then there’s another handful of instances where we got to finish, and that’s the beauty of getting to come out here every day,” Pitcher said. “And at the end of the day, the best players will play and the guys that we feel like give us the best chance to win in any given week, so a long way left before we have to make any decisions.”
Iosivas has been an effective red-zone target for the Bengals in the past but struggled with drops last year as he was trying to become a bigger part of the offense between the 20-yard lines. He had a big drop Thursday, Aug. 6, in practice but otherwise has looked solid to open camp.
The idea of competing with another draft pick might have bothered Iosivas in the past, but he said he doesn’t care if that’s how others view it. He’s focused on continuing to improve and has come to the understanding that a great season for him isn’t necessarily going to show in the statistics because of the two key players ahead of him.
Close
Cincinnati Bengals: Burrow still ranks among best QBs in NFL
*
Facebook
*
Twitter
*
WhatsApp
*
LinkedIn
*
SMS
*
Email
*
Print
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Chase Brown among middle tier of NFL running backs
*
Facebook
*
Twitter
*
WhatsApp
*
LinkedIn
*
SMS
*
Email
*
Print
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Receiving corps looking for more production in 2026
*
Facebook
*
Twitter
*
WhatsApp
*
LinkedIn
*
SMS
*
Email
*
Print
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Offensive line looking to continue climb in 2026
*
Facebook
*
Twitter
*
WhatsApp
*
LinkedIn
*
SMS
*
Email
*
Print
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Overhauled defensive line caught attention
*
Facebook
*
Twitter
*
WhatsApp
*
LinkedIn
*
SMS
*
Email
*
Print
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Linebackers expected to make leap in Year 2
*
Facebook
*
Twitter
*
WhatsApp
*
LinkedIn
*
SMS
*
Email
*
Print
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Are the safety concerns a thing of the past?
*
Facebook
*
Twitter
*
WhatsApp
*
LinkedIn
*
SMS
*
Email
*
Print
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Depth improved at cornerback
*
Facebook
*
Twitter
*
WhatsApp
*
LinkedIn
*
SMS
*
Email
*
Print
*
Copy article link
*
Save
How do the Bengals position groups stack up against the rest of the NFL?
Laurel Pfahler breaks down the Cincinnati Bengals position groups heading into the 2026 season in this 8-part series.
Cincinnati Bengals: Burrow still ranks among best QBs in NFL
Cincinnati Bengals: Chase Brown among middle tier of NFL running backs
Cincinnati Bengals: Receiving corps looking for more production in 2026
Cincinnati Bengals: Offensive line looking to continue climb in 2026
Cincinnati Bengals: Overhauled defensive line caught attention
Cincinnati Bengals: Linebackers expected to make leap in Year 2
Cincinnati Bengals: Are the safety concerns a thing of the past?
Cincinnati Bengals: Depth improved at cornerback
This is a big year for the 2023 sixth-round draft pick, though, being the final season of his contract.
“I mean, obviously, like looking at it from the outside, it’s my fourth year, I’ll be a free agent next year and stuff, so ideally, you want to get paid the most you can,” Iosivas said. “But if you think about that stuff too much, then you play like, oh, I need to get this, I need to get this, instead of just letting things come to you, and so obviously, it’s a big year, but you kind of just got to mentally think about everything else.”
With the Bengals moving Chase around to different spots, the No. 3 receiver is ideally versatile as well. Iosivas learned to play the slot two years ago, and Young believes he can fill that spot as well, though he never got a chance to in college.
The idea of lining up on a nickel corner, safety or linebacker is enticing for the 6-foot-5 rookie, and slot receivers aren’t always the shorter receivers anymore. He called it “fun digging out a safety” even if it’s just to spring Chase Brown or another player.
Young’s biggest plays in practices so far, though, have been high-point balls from Joe Flacco and Burrow, where the defensive backs had good coverage but couldn’t outjump him.
“When we have amazing quarterbacks like that, they can put it out of the reach to where I can just go get it,” Young said. “Makes it really easy for myself. I love it. I mean, I got a really good height advantage over a lot of DBs, so just being able to go up and get passes with my feet and basically, you’ll dump the ball. Basically, just what I like to do.”
As a rookie in an offense featuring Chase and Higgins, there’s no time for rookie mistakes, Young said. But knowing there are others in front of him, Iosivas included, means he has time to develop without a ton of pressure.
“I mean, coming from a program where I started a little bit and just realizing where your role is on the team, I got to do my 1/11, and right now it’s figuring out every way I can get on the field,” Young said. “We got two going to be Hall of Fame receivers ahead of me, so just sitting back and learning, so I could be in their spot one day.”
“I think I’m one of the luckiest receivers to get drafted. I got two Hall of Famers in front of me who I get to learn from. I’m not rushed into a system where I got to perform right now. But when my number is called, I got to be ready to perform.”
Continue reading...
In his mind, there’s Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and then everyone else competing for roles behind them.
Iosivas has been the clear No. 3 the past couple of years, though, and is working to retain his share of those snaps. For the second time in three years, the Bengals drafted a wide receiver that could take a piece of that pie.
Young, a lengthy fourth-round draft pick this year out of Georgia, has been drawing a lot of attention with splash plays in training camp so far. While mainly playing with the second-team offense, he’s also gotten reps with Joe Burrow and the first-team offense and is taking advantage of every opportunity to show what he could bring.
“There’s a handful of instances where they’ve done some really impressive things, and then there’s another handful of instances where we got to finish, and that’s the beauty of getting to come out here every day,” Pitcher said. “And at the end of the day, the best players will play and the guys that we feel like give us the best chance to win in any given week, so a long way left before we have to make any decisions.”
Iosivas has been an effective red-zone target for the Bengals in the past but struggled with drops last year as he was trying to become a bigger part of the offense between the 20-yard lines. He had a big drop Thursday, Aug. 6, in practice but otherwise has looked solid to open camp.
The idea of competing with another draft pick might have bothered Iosivas in the past, but he said he doesn’t care if that’s how others view it. He’s focused on continuing to improve and has come to the understanding that a great season for him isn’t necessarily going to show in the statistics because of the two key players ahead of him.
Close
Cincinnati Bengals: Burrow still ranks among best QBs in NFL
*
*
*
*
*
SMS
*
*
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Chase Brown among middle tier of NFL running backs
*
*
*
*
*
SMS
*
*
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Receiving corps looking for more production in 2026
*
*
*
*
*
SMS
*
*
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Offensive line looking to continue climb in 2026
*
*
*
*
*
SMS
*
*
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Overhauled defensive line caught attention
*
*
*
*
*
SMS
*
*
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Linebackers expected to make leap in Year 2
*
*
*
*
*
SMS
*
*
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Are the safety concerns a thing of the past?
*
*
*
*
*
SMS
*
*
*
Copy article link
*
Save
Cincinnati Bengals: Depth improved at cornerback
*
*
*
*
*
SMS
*
*
*
Copy article link
*
Save
How do the Bengals position groups stack up against the rest of the NFL?
Laurel Pfahler breaks down the Cincinnati Bengals position groups heading into the 2026 season in this 8-part series.
Cincinnati Bengals: Burrow still ranks among best QBs in NFL
Cincinnati Bengals: Chase Brown among middle tier of NFL running backs
Cincinnati Bengals: Receiving corps looking for more production in 2026
Cincinnati Bengals: Offensive line looking to continue climb in 2026
Cincinnati Bengals: Overhauled defensive line caught attention
Cincinnati Bengals: Linebackers expected to make leap in Year 2
Cincinnati Bengals: Are the safety concerns a thing of the past?
Cincinnati Bengals: Depth improved at cornerback
This is a big year for the 2023 sixth-round draft pick, though, being the final season of his contract.
“I mean, obviously, like looking at it from the outside, it’s my fourth year, I’ll be a free agent next year and stuff, so ideally, you want to get paid the most you can,” Iosivas said. “But if you think about that stuff too much, then you play like, oh, I need to get this, I need to get this, instead of just letting things come to you, and so obviously, it’s a big year, but you kind of just got to mentally think about everything else.”
With the Bengals moving Chase around to different spots, the No. 3 receiver is ideally versatile as well. Iosivas learned to play the slot two years ago, and Young believes he can fill that spot as well, though he never got a chance to in college.
The idea of lining up on a nickel corner, safety or linebacker is enticing for the 6-foot-5 rookie, and slot receivers aren’t always the shorter receivers anymore. He called it “fun digging out a safety” even if it’s just to spring Chase Brown or another player.
Young’s biggest plays in practices so far, though, have been high-point balls from Joe Flacco and Burrow, where the defensive backs had good coverage but couldn’t outjump him.
“When we have amazing quarterbacks like that, they can put it out of the reach to where I can just go get it,” Young said. “Makes it really easy for myself. I love it. I mean, I got a really good height advantage over a lot of DBs, so just being able to go up and get passes with my feet and basically, you’ll dump the ball. Basically, just what I like to do.”
As a rookie in an offense featuring Chase and Higgins, there’s no time for rookie mistakes, Young said. But knowing there are others in front of him, Iosivas included, means he has time to develop without a ton of pressure.
“I mean, coming from a program where I started a little bit and just realizing where your role is on the team, I got to do my 1/11, and right now it’s figuring out every way I can get on the field,” Young said. “We got two going to be Hall of Fame receivers ahead of me, so just sitting back and learning, so I could be in their spot one day.”
“I think I’m one of the luckiest receivers to get drafted. I got two Hall of Famers in front of me who I get to learn from. I’m not rushed into a system where I got to perform right now. But when my number is called, I got to be ready to perform.”
Continue reading...
