Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase and Bengals Bring Intensity to Training Camp

CINCINNATI -- The Cincinnati Bengals are all about the competitive edge this season, trying to put their disastrous 2025 behind them.

They are trying to instill it on both sides of the line of scrimmage from Day 1 of training camp. That much was obvious as they opened their seventh training camp with Joe Burrow as their starting quarterback.

The fire was full display early on the first day of camp on Wednesday, and came moments after second-year edge rusher Shemar Stewart was carted off with a left leg injury.

Star receiver Ja’Marr Chase was running routes during full 11-on-11 periods when cornerback DJ Turner II gave him some stiff resistance. Veteran slot corner Jalen Davis, battling for a starting spot in the much-improved Cincinnati secondary, came over to get in Chase’s face with some trash talking.

“Brothers fight,” Turner said. “Just competitive. Everybody is trying to win, that’s all there is to it.”

The star Bengals receiver took exception and got into a shoving match with Davis while ripping off and tossing Turner’s helmet angrily away. It was an edge that was obvious to quarterback Joe Burrow from the start of practice.

“Number 1 (Ja’Marr Chase) sure had one,” Burrow said after the first training camp of the year. “Number 0 (DJ Turner) did, too. So, those two are two of the best in the league, and they're going at it every day. So, whatever those guys need to get excited to get better, go ahead and do it.”

Entering his seventh NFL season, Burrow knows there’s a balance to be struck between a competing hard with teammates and going too far and risking injury. Burrow made it clear he likes the scraps between teammates up to a point. That point was when Chase shoved back in the face of Davis.

“To an extent (but) when it starts to interrupt practice, not too much,” Burrow said. “But if you can maybe punch somebody in the face in about 15 to 20 seconds, and then get back lined up, that's probably ideal.”

Head coach Zac Taylor is all about motivation early in camp. During a meeting to set the tone for practices, Taylor left something on the meeting room board for all to read: 6-11. That was the record from Cincinnati’s disastrous 2025 season.

Another example of the intensity came during a run by running back Chase Brown. Center Ted Karras took on new defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II one-on-one and sealed a block without pads to open the hole for Brown.

As Brown jumped into the gap for his run, Karras shouted “plus-six, plus-six” at the man in the middle of the Bengals defensive line, indicating a six-yard run.

“Just celebrating that was a good play,” Karras said. “It was a six-yard gain.”

Asked about Karras’ bravado and trash-talking during practice, Lawrence laughed.

“I love him,” Lawrence said. “He's the most competitive guy I've probably ever been against, for real, in practice. So it's a joy, and in practice, it's easy to lose that edge, but he helps you keep it. Just how much of a pro he is.”

“I didn't give a damn what he was talking about. I probably make that tackle, but he's yelling. It’s a positive football offense, but it's situations that you work through, and you keep grinding and pushing each other.

Lawrence is also going to make an impression on Burrow as the Bengals continue to get ready for the 2026 season.

“I looked him in his eye a couple times. I didn't say much,” Lawrence said. “I let him be the be the quarterback. But it's good. It's just a competitive spirit, and me doing that is going to help him get better, and him finding ways to get around me and throw the ball is going to help me get better. So it's good to test all those situations here in practice and camps, and so in the game, it's just second nature.”