The Cincinnati Bengals look quite a bit different to opposing teams this year.
Joe Burrow is under center. The front office remade the defense. And the team even went out and traded away Carlos Dunlap, it’s second in-season trade since 1985.
For Mike Tomlin, head coach of the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers, the new-look Bengals are quite interesting.
Tomlin, for example, sure sounds happy he won’t have to deal with Dunlap anymore, according to Chris Adamski of the Tribune-Review: “It is interesting preparing for the Bengals and not having to prepare for Carlos Dunlap. We do not miss Carlos Dunlap.”
It also sounds like Tomlin wouldn’t mind if the Bengals went ahead and traded away Tyler Boyd, too:
Tomlin says Bengals' Tyler Boyd (Pitt/Clairton) is one of the elite slot WRs in the NFL.
— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) November 10, 2020
And what impresses Tomlin the most about Burrow? Adamski captured that too: “The most impressive thing has been his charisma, his moxie, his competitive spirit.”
It’s interesting to get a look at what a successful coach like Tomlin thinks of the Bengals.
Not that this is any traditional matchup — the Bengals have changed a lot and both teams are in intensive protocol after positive COVID-19 tests. That includes Ben Roethlisberger, who is also apparently dealing with two knee injuries.
