Bengals’ Race To Replace Tyler Boyd in the Slot Has an Early Leader After Day 1

CINCINNATI — The question has lingered since well before Tyler Boyd signed with the Tennessee Titans in March. Who is going to get all of Boyd’s snaps in the slot?

Everyone knew the Cincinnati Bengals were not going to re-sign Boyd, whose 541 career receptions are fourth most in franchise history and whose 2,238 snaps in the slot the last five years led the NFL, per TruMedia.

So even before free agency and the draft, the race was on to fill the crater left behind.

Andrei Iosivas Debuts in Slot as Bengals Camp Begins

We’re still a long way from finding out the answer, but there are going to be hints along the way. And if Day 1 of training camp is any indication, Andrei Iosivas has a good chance to be the guy.

“I took every rep in the slot today,” Iosivas said after practice. “I never played F at all last year, or even in the spring.”

Two on the day for Yoshi 🙌 pic.twitter.com/XUhO5oGNxH

— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) January 7, 2024

It’s not as though the Bengals sprung it on him. Iosivas said he was given a heads-up, and he prepared for the role by watching the man who defined the role.

“I didn’t feel uncomfortable,” Iosivas said. “I was watching a lot of tape, watching a lot of TB and how he gets certain leverages against certain coverages. I had a lot of good film to watch.”

New offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher said at Monday’s pre-camp luncheon there are five to seven players who could compete to replace Boyd’s 500 slot snaps, which were the second most in the league in 2023 behind Carolina’s Adam Thielen.

“With TB leaving, there’s a lot of targets that left the building,” Pitcher said. “Maybe somebody plays themselves into the position where it is primarily one individual over the next month plus. Maybe five guys play themselves into some portion of that segment of our offense. We’re open to all those things.

“I feel good about the five, six, seven guys that are going to get a chance to vie for some of those opportunities,” he continued. “And I think they’re going to do a good job and hopefully give us some really hard decisions to make as coaches as to who to put in those spots.”

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Tight end Mike Gesicki has played 50% of his snaps in the slot the last few years in New England and Miami. Charlie Jones appeared to be Boyd’s heir apparent when he was drafted two rounds ahead of Iosivas last year. Trenton Irwin has experience in there, as does tight end Tanner Hudson.

Rookie third-round pick Jermaine Burton is an option as well.  Even second-year running back Chase Brown, who worked with Iosivas and wide receivers coach Drew Lieberman in Atlanta this offseason, is in the mix.

And the true wild card is Ja’Marr Chase, who is expected to move around to any and all parts of the formations this season.

The Bengals are exploring which players can add versatility to their skill set as well as gauging who will be the best bet to line up in the slot in Week 1 against the New England Patriots.

“I think they definitely want to see who has strengths in what area,” Iosivas said. “Can he win on the out? Can he win on a crosser? It will be fun to see. I think it’s fun to see how different people react to being in different spots.”