Cincinnati Bengals Release Official Depth Chart: Instant Reaction and Takeaways

Andrei Iosivas Starting in Slot

Iosivas separated himself early in training camp and never looked back. He has Joe Burrow's trust and the trust of the coaching staff. The Bengals are expected to have a rotation in the slot that includes tight end Mike Gesicki, but Iosivas is expected to get the third-most snaps among the wide receivers—assuming Ja'Marr Chase is on the field.

Drew Sample TE1

Sample is listed as a starter and rightfully so. This may surprise some, but he'll play the majority of the in-line tight end snaps. That gives Gesicki the flexibility to move into the slot, line up wide and be a dynamic pass catching threat on offense.

It's fair to call Sample and Gesicki co-starters, but one has to be listed first on the depth chart.

Dax Hill Starting, But Could Move to Nickel

Hill beat out DJ Turner II for the outside cornerback job, but he's also listed as Mike Hilton's backup at nickel. That says two things.

One: the Bengals are confident in Hill's versatility and believe he could move inside without missing a beat. And two: Turner had a solid training camp. Hill might've won the job, but Turner grew as a player and made plenty of plays in camp. They're confident in lining him up outside.

Chase Brown on Kick Returns

Brown is expected to get plenty of touches on offense, so having him as one of the starting kick returners is interesting. Charlie Jones is third behind Brown and Trayveon Williams.

The Bengals love Brown's speed and power that he runs with, but if he works his way into a large role on offense, it's fair to wonder how long he'll be on kickoff return duty.