The Cincinnati Bengals have a pair of breakout candidates with Andrei Iosivas and Chase Brown.
Iosivas, the sixth-round wideout from last year, didn’t get many chances due to a stacked depth chart, yet looked the part when asked. And Brown, a fifth-round rookie last year, was due more playing time before an ill-timed injury, yet looked explosive upon his return.
It turns out both guys got together this offseason and trained after head coach Zac Taylor made a common comment to both in post-season meetings — the team would like to see them improve as pass-catchers.
And it sure sounds like they did.
“I would say Andrei and Chase made the fastest improvement of any players I’ve ever had in the program of 15 years doing this, this is year seven at the NFL level,” receiver coach Drew Lieberman said, according to Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic. “I’ve never had two players improve faster.”
Per Dehner, Brown’s main focus was all about actual receiving technique so that he can have more confidence and consistency as a weapon out of the backfield. With Iosivas, it was a combination of attacking the ball and refinements to certain routes.
In the short term, Brown figures to have a bigger impact in the base offense as he pairs with Zack Moss out of the backfield. But Iosivas is one injury away from being a starter too, plus he’s been circled as a possible Tee Higgins replacement as early as 2025, too.
Given the assembled quotes over the spring about how impressed Joe Burrow and others are with the two weapons, it’s clear both guys are on the right track heading into their second seasons.
