Bengals plan to make running back Brown a focal point of the offense

CINCINNATI (AP) — After being one of the league's top running backs in the second half of last season, the Cincinnati Bengals are looking for Chase Brown to be an even bigger focal point this season. "I believe Chase Brown is a top-10 back in the league," offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher said. "Certainly, you don't want to burn the guy out. You also want to make sure your most explosive players are on the field and ready to touch the ball as many times as possible." Between Week 9 through Week 17 last season, Brown ranked fifth in the league in yards from scrimmage and third in touches. He missed the season finale at Pittsburgh because of an ankle injury. At this point last year, Brown was the team's backup running back behind Zack Moss. Then, as Brown improved his ability as a pass catcher out of the backfield, he started earning more snaps. He took advantage of the opportunity and ran with it, and Brown finished the season with 1,350 scrimmage yards (990 yards rushing, 360 receiving yards). This year, Brown said that he feels stronger, more confident as a rusher and even more dependable as a pass catcher. He had 54 receptions last season after only 14 as a rookie in 2023. "Sometimes, I think about the stretch I've had and the improvements that I've made," Brown said. "I try to just stay in the moment. As cliche as it sounds. As much as I am thinking ahead sometimes, I'm really trying to just stay in the moment and focus on what plays I can make right now. The improvements I can make at practice. Learning opportunities I can take away and learn from right now so when Week 1 comes, we're full speed." Brown followed up what's been a strong training camp with a strong performance in last Thursday's preseason opener against the Philadelphia Eagles. He ran the ball five times for 26 yards, and caught three passes for 25 yards over the course of his two series with the first-team offense. The Bengals scored on their first two possessions with Joe Burrow and the first unit on the field, but ended up losing 34-27. Cincinnati's second preseason game is Monday night at Washington. "With the speed and the way he's able to use it coming out of the backfield, I don't think he really gets credit for the way he actually runs the ball," said Bengals safety Geno Stone, who faced Brown in 2023 when Stone was in Baltimore. "He's a guy who can run the ball between the tackles or outside of the tackles. He has really good balance. When he hits the hole and gets through, he's gone." The Bengals are redesigning their run scheme this year around Brown's strengths. Heading into 2025, the Bengals coaching staff had a series of meetings to determine how they wanted the run game to evolve. "At the end of the conversation, it wasn't about what we think looks good on the board," running backs coach Justin Hill said. "(It was) what is Chase good at? How can we showcase his tools in the run game and in the pass game? Where we have in the run game right now is pretty true to who we think Chase is and what he can be." ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl