The Cincinnati Bengals took some encouraging steps over the weekend as far as the long-term outlook goes.
While the trip to Baltimore resulted in a loss to the Ravens, the snap counts show some signs the team is willing to lean harder into its draft class and youth now that things are still winless over six weeks.
Offense
— Second-round pick Drew Sample appeared to get a start and was in for 24 percent of the offensive snaps. Better than nothing and he ended up catching a pass.
— Giovani Bernard checks in with a higher snap count than Joe Mixon. Blame game flow — once the running game wasn’t working and the team falls behind, the staff prefers Bernard for his pass blocking.
— Tyler Eifert had about 50 percent of the snaps again and didn’t do much — again.
— Alex Redmond checks in with a high snap number at right guard due to a John Miller injury.
— Auden Tate got 90 percent and made the most of it by leading the team in receiving.
Defense
— Germaine Pratt, a third-round rookie, got the start and ended up with 38 percent of the snaps. Better than nothing — the Bengals need his speed out there. While this might have been simply to counter what the Ravens were showing, reps are important for a guy who could be a big piece fo the future.
— Carl Lawson was in there for 78 percent of the snaps with Carlos Dunlap down, though the line and pass rush overall struggled.
— B.W. Webb, fractured arm and all, got 70 percent of the snaps.
— Dre Kirkpatrick logged just 21 percent of the snaps before leaving on a cart with a serious-looking knee injury.
— Brandon Wilson played 69 percent of the defensive snaps atop his returning gig, which saw him take the opening kickoff back for a score. He’s an encouraging, albeit quiet growing chip for the defense who was in there because Shawn Williams was playing hurt.
