:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/63308089/1094167406.jpg.0.jpg)
Notebook: Taylor Finds A Region
PHOENIX _ New Bengals head coach Zac Taylor loves the fact he and his team are under the radar. The pundits are giving the AFC North to the Browns. Antonio Brown plays for the Raiders but his tweets against the Steelers are keeping Pittsburgh in the tabloids. The Ravens are dropping money on old Pro Bowlers.
Taylor Puts It On The Table
Next door was a rubber-necking scrum jammed around new Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens, the man suddenly pushing the buttons of Baker Mayfield and Odell Beckham Jr., in what may replace the Steelers as the AFC North’s next soap opera.
Bengals Mock Draft Round Up 2.0
Take a look at which players media outlets are predicting the Bengals select with its first round pick in their most recent mock drafts. Michigan linebacker Devin Bush leads the way with six mentions, followed by former college teammate and defensive end Rashad Gary with two.
Quick Zactakes
PHOENIX - Giants head coach Pat Shurmur had to lead Zac Taylor to Tuesday’s NFL coaches media breakfast through the Arizona Biltmore’s Byzantine hallways, but once in front of a small dish of fruit the new Bengals head coach knew his way around the questions from a smattering of local beat scribes and a knot of curious national reporters:
Mel Kiper’s latest mock draft has Bengals going with a new LB
Here’s what Kiper’s mock at ESPN had to say: “I have gone with the other Devin in previous Mock Drafts — LSU’s Devin White — but Bush isn’t far behind White as the best middle linebacker in this class. One of the prospects I picked out as a combine riser because of his workouts, Bush is always around the ball on film. The Bengals just brought back Preston Brown in free agency, but Bush could play any of the linebacker spots at the next level. He’s a three-down player.”
Bengals were NFL’s only team to vote against pass interference replay
At the owner’s meetings this week, the NFL passed an overwhelming vote to make offensive and defensive pass interference calls reviewable. The only vote against the new addition, going against all 31 other teams, was the Bengals.
Random News
Owners make pass interference, non-calls reviewable
Owners passed the provision, 31-1, at the Annual League Meeting in Phoenix on Tuesday night. The Cincinnati Bengals were the lone team to vote against pass interference replay reviews, sources told NFL Network's Mike Garafolo.
Bruce Arians on hiring female coaches: 'It's time'
This isn't the first time Arians has added a female to his coaching staff, as he hired the league's first female training camp coaching intern, Dr. Jen Welter, in 2015 while with the Arizona Cardinals.
Harbaugh: Browns 'most talented team' in AFC North
With Beckham and wide receiver Jarvis Landry, the Browns boast a potent receiving tandem for quarterback Baker Mayfield. Cleveland also has a backfield consisting of Nick Chubb, Duke Johnson and Kareem Hunt, who will serve an eight-game suspension to start the season.
NFL owners reject onside kick alternative proposal
NFL owners rejected a proposal, proposed by Denver, "to provide an alternative onside kick that would allow a team who is trailing in the game an opportunity to maintain possession of the ball after scoring," NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Tuesday from the Annual League Meeting in Phoenix.