Bengals News (8/24): Landing spot

John Ross Vows To Believe In Himself
So when he took maybe the fastest Bengals receiver of them all under his wing this past spring and summer out in their native California in mega seven-on-sevens, he would always tell John Ross, "You're the prettiest girl in the club, Ross. You have great talent. You need to believe you have the great talent. He needs to believe he's the prettiest girl in the club. Because your mentality sometimes means more than your talent.

The Bengals placed DT Renell Wren on the Reserve/Injured list, and activated WR John Ross from the Reserve list.
Wren, a second-year player, suffered a right quad injury in practice on Aug. 17. He played in 11 games (two starts) as a rookie last season and recorded eight tackles.

Quick Hits: With Son Safe, Ross Back To Football; Defense Puts Heat On Burrow
John Ross, father of a three-year-old son first and Bengals wide receiver second, returned to the practice field Sunday morning from a week-long hiatus that took him home to California to care for his son and the son's mother as they battled Covid-19.

WR John Ross on leaving Bengals training camp to care for son with COVID-19 - 'I'm a father first'
Following Ross' first practice since he rejoined the team, Ross said there was no hesitation to leave when he learned his son and the son's mother contracted the virus. "There was no thought behind it," Ross said on Sunday. "There was no chance of me staying. With all due respect to anything, I'm a father first."

Bengals training camp: Joe Burrow’s throw power surprised Tee Higgins
Higgins finally returned to live-action Sunday after battling a small hamstring issue and immediately came away with an important takeaway — Burrow slings the rock with some serious power.

Bengals hosted 4 players on tryouts at training camp
Many times these sorts of tryouts are coaches just getting familiar with names out there in case they need to make a move at a later date. Given the injury history in the offensive trenches lately and Trae Waynes and Shawn Williams already suffering varying injuries in the secondary, future-minded workouts would make some sense here.

Arizona Cardinals bolster CB spot by signing veteran Dre Kirkpatrick
Kirkpatrick is the third corner the Cardinals have signed in the week since Alford was lost for the season with a pec injury. Alford was put on injured reserve on Friday. Kirkpatrick gives the Cardinals a veteran presence at outside corner opposite Patrick Peterson.

Around the league

Ravens release Earl Thomas: Sorting out winners, losers
It's not every day that a top team releases a Pro Bowl-level player to whom they have made an enormous financial commitment after just one year, but here we are with Earl Thomas. The Baltimore Ravens released the veteran safety Sunday after he had a practice fight with defensive teammate Chuck Clark on Friday. Thomas, remember, made an obscene gesture to the Seahawks sideline as he was being taken off the field on a cart after suffering a season-ending leg injury in 2018, so his volatile behavior toward his own team is not out of character. Are there any winners here? Not really. But it's all relative in the NFL, so some will come out better than others.

Lamar Jackson missed last two practices with soft-tissue injury
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero later reported, per an informed source, that Jackson's absence has been "precautionary" as he deals with a groin strain, adding that there are no big concerns about the severity of the reigning MVP's ailment.

Another 49ers WR down? Brandon Aiyuk hurts hammy
Samuel has a Jones fracture and is likely to miss some time in the regular season, Hurd is on injured reserve with an ACL tear and James has a wrist injury that won't have him ready by season's kickoff.

Camp Buzz: Bucs rookie Winfield impressing every day
Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Mike Edwards is dealing with an eye infection that's sensitive to light. Bruce Arians said he can't miss too much practice because rookie second-round pick Antoine Winfield Jr. might well take his spot. While Edwards likely hasn't seen Winfield's impressive training camp performances, he's "turned heads and made plays every single day," NFL Network's James Palmer reported Sunday on Inside Training Camp Live. Earlier in the week, Palmer reported Winfield's versatility had been hugely impressive as he's shown an ability to line up deep, in the slot, out wide and was going to get a look at returning punts. He's also impressed with his listening ability. Thus, Winfield's ears are open, just as much as he's opening eyes.