AFC Notes; Bengals, Browns, Ravens, Steelers

Bengals

Bengals’ WR A.J. Green still wants to remain with the team despite being frustrated after leaving Sunday’s game with a hamstring injury.

“I think we’re building something special here, and I just want to be a part of the team and help us win,” Green said, via Ben Baby of ESPN. “I think we’re all frustrated about the way we’re playing because we’re way better than what we’re putting on tape. For me, I just have to channel that frustration and keep playing like I have for the last couple of years. I just can’t let the frustration get to me. I’m a leader on this team. I feel like I let my teammates down. That’s the biggest thing. I felt disappointed in myself because that’s not who I am as a person and as a player.”

• DOUBTFUL for Week 6: WR Auden Tate (shoulder)
• QUESTIONABLE for Week 6: CB Mackensie Alexander (hamstring)

Browns

Browns’ TE Austin Hooper and OC Alex Van Pelt and talked about the sore ribs that QB Baker Mayfield is experiencing, with Van Pelt saying: “I know he is feeling better. He is trending in the right direction.”

“He is a tough son of a gun for sure,” Hooper said, via Scott Petrak BrownsZone.com. “He sits in there, takes licks every week and handles it like a man. He is the leader of our offense for a reason. You do not get the respect of other grown men in the locker room without having some toughness to you. I think that is a credit to him and what he is all about.” 

As for S Ronnie Harrison, he is still going through concussion protocol, but DC Joe Woods says he may still play on Sunday.

“It is really day by day with him, but I think we may get him back. We’ll see. Regardless, we will have guys that will be ready to step up and play. The guys are all familiar with the defense. We have the ability to move pieces around. We feel fine moving forward with Sheldrick. He showed playmaking ability as soon as we put him in a game.”

• Browns HC Kevin Stefanski said that both QB Baker Mayfield and WR Odell Beckham “trending in the right direction” toward playing Sunday. (Jake Trotter)
• Tom Pelissero reports that the NFL informed the Browns hat practice squad QB Kyle Lauletta isn’t eligible to dress Sunday at Pittsburgh because he won’t have completed COVID-19 protocol when the team departs Saturday. 
• The Cleveland Browns are hosting DB Prince Smith for a visit on Thursday, according to Aaron Wilson.
• OUT for Week 6: S Ronnie Harrison (concussion), S Karl Joseph (hamstring), LB Jacob Phillips (knee), G Wyatt Teller (calf)
• QUESTIONABLE for Week 6: WR Odell Beckham (illness), P Jamie Gillan (left groin), WR Jarvis Landry (hip, rib), QB Baker Mayfield (chest), DT Larry Ogunjobi (abdomen), DE Olivier Vernon (groin)

Ravens

• Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic tosses out Vikings DE Yannick Ngakoue as a speculative trade target to keep an eye on for the Ravens.
• Zrebiec explains that Baltimore tried to acquire Ngakoue from the Jaguars, but had limited cap room to pull off the deal. The Vikings are currently 1-4 and Ngakoue is a free agent at the end of the season, so maybe Minnesota opts to see what’s out there for him.
• DOUBTFUL for Week 6: DE Derek Wolfe (neck, concussion)
• QUESTIONABLE for Week 6: WR Miles Boykin (thigh), S Anthony Levine (abdomen), WR Chris Moore (finger, thigh), CB Marcus Peters (thigh), G Tyre Phillips (shoulder), CB Jimmy Smith (knee), T Ronnie Stanley (shoulder)

Steelers

Following his breakout game in Week 5, Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger says rookie WR Chase Claypool isn’t going to catch anyone off guard from here on. 

“The thing I told him after the game is he isn’t going to be able to sneak up on anybody,” Roethlisberger said, via Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “So how is he going to rise to the occasion now that people are going to be watching him?”

• Mark Kaboly of The Athletic mentions Steelers RB Jaylen Samuels as a trade candidate to watch for the Steelers, considering their depth at the position. However, Kaboly considers it unlikely that Pittsburgh will make a trade before the upcoming deadline.
• OUT for Week 6: G David DeCastro (abdomen), WR Diontae Johnson (back)