AFC Notes: Bengals, Browns, Ravens, Steelers

Bengals

When the Bengals hired HC Zac Taylor, there was an expectation it would take time to turn the franchise around. But a 4-22-1 record so far in two seasons is still a tough sell. That record isn’t likely to improve much with No. 1 overall pick Joe Burrow rehabbing instead of starting at quarterback but Taylor says he’s still focused on selling his vision and working on using these hard times to develop Cincinnati into a contender. 

“My communication with the players is we show them the tape. We show them where the mistakes are. We show them the directions we’re headed in the right way,” Taylor said via the Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr. “Oftentimes, this thing has come down to one play and we gotta find that way to make that one play at the end of the game. We just haven’t done it yet. Again, all I can say is when you stand in front of a team at the end of the game — win or loss — and you preach to those guys, you know that they’re all in it together and they believe in what we’re doing and they can see it because they see it every day in practice. They see it on the game tape. They know where we’re close and we’re just not getting it done yet. And that’s our focus is keeping these guys together. That hasn’t been as difficult as some might think it is just because we’re trying to build off the right talent and character combined and that has really helped us through these trying times.

“We keep doing everything that we believe in and keep making progress. I know there’s a day where we’re gonna bust down this wall and there’s gonna be some great times ahead. I know that. Right now it’s very difficult sometimes when you deal with these losses, but I also know what our future holds for us. We gotta keep working towards that. These two years that we’ve endured will serve us incredibly well in the future when we’ll win a lot of football games, we’re playing for championships, these will be times that we look back and reflect on as almost necessary for where we end up being.”

Browns

• Browns HC Kevin Stefanski says he’s hopeful S Ronnie Harrison will make it back this year. (Tony Grossi)
• Browns signed DE Jamal Davis to their practice squad. (NFLTR)

Steelers

• Steelers ST coordinator Danny Smith coached from the sidelines Wednesday after being cleared to return from an illness. (Burt Lauten)
• Steelers placed C Maurkice Pouncey on the COVID-19 list. (NFLTR)
• Steelers promoted RB Wendell Smallwood and OL Anthony Coyle to their active roster.