Bengals Preseason Veteran QB Logan Woodside Excited To Square Off vs. No. 1 Pick Caleb Williams

CINCINNATI — When Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Logan Woodside entered the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the fourth quarter this past Saturday night, it was familiar territory.

A seventh-round pick by the Bengals in 2018, Woodside has appeared in seven games in his career while throwing just seven passes.

But in the preseason?

Woodside has thrown 250 passes for 1,637 yards and eight touchdowns with four interceptions. Only two other quarterbacks have more pass attempts in the NFL preseason since 2018 — Nathan Peterman (265) and Tim Boyle (264).

Bengals QB Logan Woodside Thrives on Galvanizing Rookies in Preseason

Most of Woodside’s experience has come in the fourth quarter of those games, as it was against Tampa Bay when he completed 8 of 12 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown to jumpstart a Cincinnati offense that had done nothing since Joe Burrow and the starters exited after an opening 12-play touchdown drive.

Woodside’s philosophy when he steps on the field in the fourth quarter of a preseason game?

“One hundred percent just let it rip,” he said. “Try not to worry about it; trust what I see, and let it fly.”

With Burrow or any of the other starters not expected to play and backup Jake Browning dealing with a rib injury, Woodside won’t be waiting until the fourth quarter to let it rip Saturday against the Chicago Bears.

He’ll get the start, and he could still be in the game by the time the fourth quarter rolls around, with the only other quarterback on the roster being undrafted rookie Rocky Lombardi, who has barely had any reps in training camp.

“In the first quarter, I’m gonna try to do the same,” Woodside said.

Though most of his experience has come in fourth quarters, Woodside is unbeaten in four preseason starts, going 3-0 with the Tennessee Titans from 2019-22 and 1-0 with the Atlanta Falcons last year.

“I’ve been through a couple of preseasons now,” Woodside said. “Being in the league for this long, it’s just operating the game and trying to keep the offense moving in the right direction, especially with a lot of guys that haven’t had a ton of experience. Try to help lead them, try to galvanize the group, and go down and put points on the board.”

That’s precisely what he did against the Buccaneers, helping rookie wide receiver Jermaine Burton get his NFL legs after the third-round pick played just five snaps through the first three quarters.

Woodside’s first throw was a quick seven-yarder to Burton on the first play, a drive that ended when the Bengals couldn’t convert on 3rd-and-1.

On the next possession, Woodside drove the team from its own 32 to the Tampa Bay 37, which is when he went to Burton again on a go ball for a 37-yard touchdown.

The score gave Cincinnati the lead, but the Buccaneers answered, leaving Woodside with a chance to direct a game-winning drive. And a 38-yard shot to Burton put the offense in position to do it, but Tampa Bay’s defense shut it down after that.

“Obviously, I wish we could’ve gone down and won the game,” Woodside said. “But it was good to get out there. I had a lot of fun doing it. It was good to be in there with some rookies and try to rally them, settle them down, and put a drive together of stuff they’ve been working on throughout camp.”

FREE: Subscribe to PFN’s NFL Newsletter

Woodside, who was the 249th pick out of 255 selections in the 2018 NFL Draft, will start against Chicago rookie Caleb Williams, the No. 1 pick this year, as Bears coach Matt Eberflus intends to play his starters for a couple of series.

That means the defensive starters, too, which should present a challenge for Woodside and what is expected to be a makeshift offensive line due to starters sitting out and injuries to a few backups.

But the University of Toledo product is eager for every bit of it.

“I’ll be ready to go,” he said. “I’m excited about it.”