6 winners, 4 losers from Bengals preseason opener vs. Packers

Losers from Bengals preseason opener

Jeff Gunter

The seventh-rounder from the 2022 draft class no doubt had a rocky game against the Packers. He began opposite Joseph Ossai going up against the Green Bay starters and Pro Football Focus’ eight-ranked offensive line. He started the game with a batted ball, but a soon-to-follow neutral zone infraction and overall lethargic play did not help his case.

The Bengals drafted Myles Murphy in the first round to bolster the pass rush as Day 2 and Day 3 picks from the past two drafts (like Jeff Gunter) have not been able to sack the quarterback. With Gunter even further down the depth chart and not showing any juice on the defensive line, he needs a strong showing in the final two preseason games.

As a bubble player, Gunter is looking to be more of a practice squad candidate than a player on the 53-man roster.

Chase Brown

With Samaje Perine departing for Denver in free agency and Trayveon Williams going down in training camp, the RB2 seemed Brown’s job to lose. Cincinnati selected Brown in the fifth round out of Illinois as a security back in case Mixon’s alleged legal troubles were to escalate.

However, Chase Brown showed hardly any flashes aside from a dump-off that he turned into a first down. He was stuffed late in the backfield during the third quarter and didn’t appear productive when given touches.

Brown did see more production and racked up some yards in the fourth quarter, but he’ll need a more dominant showing in the next two preseason games to stave off his biggest competition, Chris Evans. Although Evans appeared to struggle a bit in pass-blocking, he cracked off a few explosive runs and got some looks in the return game as well.

Brown’s mediocre play paired with Evans’ upside makes the once-cut-and-dry running back two a bit more unknown.