Bengals News (8/12): Excitement growing

Cincinnati Bengals Sign Defensive Tackle Mike Daniels
Daniels (6-0, 310), a ninth-year player out of the University of Iowa, originally was a fourth-round pick of the Green Bay Packers in 2012. He spent his first seven seasons with Green Bay, before joining Detroit for one year in 2019. In 111 career games, he has 211 tackles, 30 sacks and two FFs, and he also earned a Pro Bowl nod in the 2017 season.

Bengals have decisions to make at cornerback, close to signing defensive tackle Mike Daniels
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor had nothing to say about the injury during Tuesday's Zoom media call, except that they've got a heck of a lot more depth at cornerback this August than they did last August. Guys like Tony McRae and B.W. Webb - even a first-rounder in Darqueze Dennard - played tough and gritty last season. Gamers. But they're also no longer here.

Bengals wide receiver Tyler Boyd believes the team's receiver depth will make a big impact in 2020
"Once he stepped on the field and I saw him, I just felt the energy," Boyd said this week after a day at this Zoom and Boom training camp. "I was super amped how he would be throwing the ball. He didn't prove me wrong. The one thing about Joe is he's done it at the highest level. He got the Heisman. He got the touchdown records. It's kind of expected out of a guy like him."

Why Jonah Williams is key to Bengals' rebuild with Joe Burrow
Williams, the 11th overall pick of the 2019 NFL draft, spent his entire rookie season on the sideline while he recovered from offseason shoulder surgery. That didn't stop him, however, from listening to sideline conversations and gleaning as much information as possible. Whenever it was time for Williams to suit up, he wanted to be ready.

Bengals sign former Packers and Lions defensive lineman Mike Daniels, per report
Daniels, 31, spent the 2019 season with the Detroit Lions and played nine games. He finished with 10 tackles, a sack, and two quarterback hits in just 204 snaps. Prior to joining Detroit, Daniels spent the first seven seasons of his career with the Green Bay Packers and made the Pro Bowl in 2017. Daniels had 32 pressures, two sacks and five quarterback hits in 418 snaps in his final season in Green Bay (2018) before his surprising release from the Packers just days before the start of 2019 training camp.

NFL: Bengals lose top CB Trae Waynes to chest injury
But the excitement around Joe Burrow’s rookie season took a hit on Tuesday with the loss of a defensive anchor. Head coach Zac Taylor told reporters that cornerback Trae Waynes suffered a pectoral injury this week and will be sidelined for a while.

Bengals stealing Mike Daniels is latest in long line of major wins
Maybe it wasn’t exactly coming to terms because fans had been so used to the team doing so little on the open market. But this was a new coaching staff and instead of overhauling the roster…that staff went out and got castoffs from their prior jobs. All four aren’t on the team anymore and only one of them appears to be on any roster in the league now.

Jonah Williams: ‘He’s going to be a great player for us’
A player that the Cincinnati Bengals anticipate will become a cornerstone of their franchise will make his long-awaited NFL debut on Sept. 13. Quarterback Joe Burrow, the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, is expected to play in his first pro game for the Bengals on that date, too.

Jonah Williams wants to prove Bengals right after missing 2019
While Williams never saw the field, he says he no longer feels like a rookie because he was “learning on the sideline and kind of understanding how the vets who have had a lot of success in the league” approach their jobs. He did that while rehabbing his injury and working to put himself back into position to be the team’s long-term answer on Joe Burrow‘s blindside.

Around the league

Chargers HC Anthony Lynn says he contracted COVID-19
In the opening scene of Hard Knocks: Los Angeles on Tuesday night, Los Angeles Chargers coach Anthony Lynn revealed he contracted COVID-19, unveiling the news during a Zoom meeting with his players.

Niners RB Jerick McKinnon looks 'phenomenal,' FB Kyle Juszczyk says
"Jet has looked phenomenal," fullback Kyle Juszczyk told reporters on a video conference Tuesday, via 49ers Web Zone. "You just would never guess, going out there, and watching the way he practices, how smooth he is, how he doesn't second-guess himself, how quickly he answers questions in meetings, all that kind of stuff, you would never guess that this guy hasn't been on the field for two years.

Roundup: Colts remove T.Y. Hilton (hamstring) from NFI list
The Baltimore Ravens announced the signing of running back Kenjon Barner. The 31-year-old journeyman has mostly been a returner in his career. With De'Anthony Thomas opting out, the Ravens wanted a veteran to push for return duties with rookie receiver James Proche.

Washington Football Team will play 2020 season without fans at FedEx Field
"We are fortunate to host the best fans in the NFL year after year, but the well-being of those supporters, along with that of our players, coaches and each and every member of our gameday staff is simply too important, and the current knowledge of COVID-19 too unpredictable, to welcome our fan base to FedExField to start the season," Washington Football Team owner Dan Snyder said in a statement. "We were the first team in the league to recall our scouts and other personnel from the field back in mid-March and have been monitoring this evolving situation ever since. This decision was not an easy one, but after several discussions with federal, state and local officials -- along with input from some of the nation's foremost medical experts, based right here in the nation's capital -- we are confident that it is the right one. We are working to find ways to make our fans' presence felt in new and innovative ways for 2020 and can't wait to welcome the community through the gates as soon as it's safe."