Bengals
After a rough rookie campaign, Bengals WR Jermaine Burton has been a trending topic for his play during offseason practices. Former Bengals WR T. J. Houshmandzadeh coached Burton before the draft last year, and he continued the praise of the sophomore wideout.
“Joe threw it the only place where Jermaine could catch it and Jermaine caught it,” Houshmandzadeh said, via Geoff Hobson of the team’s website. “When Jermaine is mentally locked in like that, every practice is going to be good.”
- ESPN’s Ben Baby names Burton as an under-the-radar player to watch after being “attentive and engaged” in spring workouts.
- Bengals OC Dan Pitcher praised Burton’s performance this offseason: “He’s got a good look in his eye. He’s here putting the time in.”
Browns
Browns QB Jerry Jeudy has caught passes from every quarterback on Cleveland’s roster this offseason as the team looks to solidify a starter behind center.
“It is pretty difficult because you want to always build that relationship with a quarterback and have that consistency throughout the years,” Jeudy said, via ESPN. “But as a receiver going through that, you just got to keep working and you got to learn how to adjust no matter what. Some situations ain’t going to go as planned, so you just got to figure out how to just keep going and stay on the right path.”
Browns HC Kevin Stefanski still believes that Jeudy has a ton of potential and room to grow.
“I think Jerry is still a young player. I think Jerry has room to grow,” Stefanski said. “I think he would tell you that. There’s techniques that he’s working on. It was Year 1 for us with him, so getting a feel for the route concepts that he’s really good at, things that he can improve upon. But with Year 2 with a team, you’re constantly thinking about that next step. And that can come in a variety of ways, certainly usage and where we put him and how we use them and what position he’s playing and when you’re motioning and when you’re doing different things. I think those are all the types of things that can grow in Year 2.”
Ravens
Coming off a disappointing loss in the Divisional Round in the 2024 playoffs, Ravens QB Lamar Jackson has put a stronger emphasis on off-field chemistry with his teammates. He believes the more comfortable they can feel with each other, the easier it will be to communicate on the field without necessarily spelling things out.
“I feel like just bonding with my guys will help us out a lot more on the field,” Jackson said, via ESPN’s Jamison Hensley. “Picking each other’s brains, being around each other a lot more — we’ll probably know what one of us is thinking ahead. We’re on the field and something is going on, [I’ll know Flowers] already knows what I’m thinking, I don’t have to say too much. I look over there, I have [Hopkins] now, [Rashod Bateman]; these guys, they already know what I’m thinking without me saying too much. That [comes from] bonding off the field. That’s why I want to get my guys together, [for] small things like that.”
Jackson also talked about how he’s using their key losses from a year ago to learn where they messed up and the way teams are attacking them.
“[I’m] just trying to make the game a lot easier for us. Going into a game and knowing what the defense is going to do before they do it. Just having [the opposing teams’] plays like they’re ours. Like [quarterbacks] coach Tee told you, I go back and watch the losses and see what the mistakes we made [were] and try to capitalize for next time we’re in the [same] situation.”
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