AFC Notes: Mike Tomlin, Deshaun Watson, Bengals, Browns, Ravens, Steelers

Bengals

• The Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr. says not to count on the Bengals being buyers at the trade deadline, as de facto GM Duke Tobin is pretty much philosophically opposed to trading away draft picks. 
• He’s doubtful they’ll trade away any players, either, as they’re usually reluctant to do anything that lessens their chances of winning games. 
• If Cincinnati makes an exception, Dehner writes it will likely only be for a late-round pick swap for a role player at a position like running back or tight end. 

Browns

• Adam Schefter reports Browns QB Deshaun Watson suffered a strained subscapularis within his rotator cuff and continues to experience pain and weakness with the movement of his shoulder. 
• Schefter notes baseball pitchers typically require 4-6 weeks to recover from this type of injury, while Watson is working to “regain strength and velocity” to shorten that timetable.

Ravens

• Ravens S Geno Stone on being the league leader in interceptions being one of his goals prior to the season: “I had five goals on there, and three-plus interceptions was one of them.” (PFT)

Steelers

Steelers HC Mike Tomlin said they must be able to manage Jagaurs edge rushers Josh Allen and Travon Walker in Week 8.

“We’ve got to do a really good job of managing their bigs,” Tomlin said, via JaguarsWire. “The edge guys really capture your attention. Josh Allen and Walker, in particular as a tandem, wreak a lot of havoc. I think Josh Allen’s got seven sacks. I think often times sacks don’t represent the havoc that Walker causes. I felt that way in an analysis of him leading up to the draft. He’s just a guy who wrecks a lot of things. He plays with a violence of play. He’s a wrecking ball.”

Tomlin reiterated Jacksonville has large outside linebackers they need to deal with. 

“They’ve got a 3-4 structure, but boy, those are some big outside linebackers,” Tomlin said. “It’s almost like they’re doing it with 4-3 people. And it really creates challenging regarding creating space and moving them for running lanes, for example.”