It’s never too early for bulletin-board material, especially before a Bengals-Chiefs game, AFC heavyweights with plenty of recent history.
We’re not sure how Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt feels about Taylor Swift, but we do know how he feels about Chiefs first-round pick Xavier Worthy. During Cincinnati’s open locker room on Thursday, reporters asked Taylor-Britt what worries him about the Kansas City rookie, other than speed.
“That’s about it,” Taylor-Britt said. “He can run straight. Run jet sweeps and just run straight. He can’t do too much else so that’s about it. But, like, put your hands on him – he’s only 100-some pounds – if you put your hands on him, you’ll stop the speed. So, basically put your hands on him.”
Getting hands on Worthy wasn’t exactly something Baltimore accomplished often in the NFL’s kickoff game Sept. 5. In his NFL debut, Worthy put the Chiefs on the board with a 21-yard touchdown run, then provided critical insurance with an electric 35-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter.
Three days later, Cincinnati’s defense didn’t allow a completion longer than 17 yards against New England in a 16-10 loss. But with apologies to Jacoby Brissett and the Patriots, Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid strike a bit more fear into most opponents.
But don’t blame the Bengals if they carry a more confidence than most Chiefs opponents into Sunday’s game (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS).
Since Cincinnati drafted Joe Burrow first overall in 2020, the Bengals are 3-2 against Mahomes and the Chiefs. The teams have split AFC Championship Games in that span, Cincinnati winning in 2021 and Kansas City in 2022. The only contest decided by more than three points was the last meeting, Dec. 31 in Kansas City, when Jake Browning started with Burrow on injured reserve, a 25-17 Chiefs victory.