CINCINNATI (WXIX) – Mike Gesicki was asked about the biggest difference that he’s seeing in the Bengals’ defense under Al Golden. To Gesicki, the answer was pretty obvious.
Cam Taylor-Britt has been occasionally guarding him. That never used to happen.
“There’s some moving parts back there,” Gesicki said. “Everyone is playing different roles. They’re throwing a lot at us. It’s good. They love what Al’s doing. They respect him. They’re buying into his scheme.”
Last year, the Bengals’ secondary was very static. Geno Stone played more snaps at free safety than anyone else in the NFL. Mike Hilton was in the slot whenever he was on the field. Cam Taylor-Britt played 938 snaps as a boundary cornerback and 39 total snaps in the slot. DJ Ivey was the tight end stopper.
The 2025 Bengals’ secondary is a major work in progress without a single establish starter. Every corner was benched at one point last year, Stone had to take a pay cut this offseason and Jordan Battle was a part-time player last year.
But the versatility of this year’s group is something that Golden can really build on.
“They’re really disguising their defense well these days,” Andrei Iosivas said. “They’ll call something then run something completely different. I take everything they say with a grain of salt now because they’re probably not doing what they say. It’s fun to dissect what they’re doing.”
When Golden took over as the Bengals’ new defensive coordinator, he said that he was going to throw a lot on the plate of the team’s defensive backs during the summer program. That translated as Golden had players moving in and out of the slot and in and out of different roles in the secondary.
Taylor-Britt, DJ Turner, Josh Newton, Dax Hill (injured), Daijahn Anthony and Jalen Davis can all play the slot.
“Guys are playing more inside and outside,” Battle said. “Being able to put that on tape, that helps them out and the team out. God forbid someone goes down, we have the ability to put someone in a position they’re confident in.”
The most versatile chess piece is Hill, who hasn’t practiced yet as he recovers from a torn ACL. He’s currently moving around very well on the rehab field. Hill said, “I’ve got a couple weeks left. I’m on the tail end of my treatment. In a few weeks, I should be good leading up to training camp. I feel great. I expect to keep doing what I was doing.”
Hill was the Bengals’ best defensive back before he got hurt last season. He earned an upset victory over DJ Turner in a training camp position battle, and Hill really flashed in his first experience as an outside corner. The former safety has great range, size and ball skills, and he was defending a wide variety of receivers ranging from Rashee Rice to Terry McLaurin. Hill then started in the slot against the Ravens in Week 5 and was having his best game of the season before he got hurt.
“I’m excited about Dax,” Golden said. “He knows that. I tell him all the time, (I) can’t wait to get him out there again. (He’s) sitting in front row (of the meeting room) engaged, asking questions all the time, asking questions in practice, answering questions in the meeting. He has made the most of his time, and he’s really committed to doing everything he can do to be the best he can be.”
While Hill hasn’t practice yet, he has watched all of the other corners move around different alignments and play different roles. He’s the most versatile player of the bunch with experience at safety, in the slot, as a tight end stopper and as an outside corner. He’s excited to see how he fits in Golden’s scheme. So are his teammates.
“With Dax being a guy who has already played corner and nickel, seeing how they use him, he’ll fit in just right,” Battle said. “He’ll be another piece to add to the already great guys we have. I’m excited to see it. Seeing the versatility we already have with Fig (Josh Newton), Cam and DJ and Dax when he comes back, that will be fun.”
Similar to corner, the safety position has had more moving pieces this year. Stone isn’t just playing free safety anymore like he almost exclusively did last season. Battle said that in Golden’s defense, the safeties are much more “free to roam.”
“That’s nice,” Battle said. “It reminds me of college with my role. Staying right or left. You can be to the field, to the boundary, down or high. It gives you the ability as a player to show your versatility on the field. I like that. We have the option as players to make adjustments on the fly. I like that because obviously we’re on the field playing. We have the freedom as leaders to make a call. I like that about the new defense.”
This style of defense also makes it easier for Golden to use more of the Bengals’ depth. Lou Anarumo had pretty set starters. This year, you can see a path for Daijahn Anthony, Josh Newton, DJ Ivey and Marco Wilson carving out roles.
“Fig (Josh Newton) is a guy that has benefited from this time,” Golden said. “Not just at nickel, but his ability to play multiple positions. I think (cornerbacks coach) Chuck (Burks) and (safeties coach) Jordan (Kovacs) do an unbelievable job with those guys in terms of building the depth for the season.”
Golden continued, “In our business, it’s like the tyranny of comfort, right? It’s comfortable to keep a guy at nickel or keep a guy at corner. These guys are just the opposite, Jordan and Chuck. They make the guys play a bunch of different spots, so when that occurs during the season, it’s second-nature for the guys to play a different spot. We’ve been moving guys around. They’re just a fun group to coach. Their football intelligence, their energy in the classroom and on the field, and I’m just really excited about them as a group.”
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