HEAD COACH LIAM COEN
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2025
(On trading RB Tank Bigsby) “No, it really just came down to, after some time of evaluating
and just working through some things, just felt like, especially post Sunday, probably best
to move on, to just give him an opportunity to go and same with us. We feel good about
where we’re at moving forward. I wish him nothing but the best, and he’s a good dude and
just worked out that way. So, really feel confident, obviously, with some of the way that
those other guys stepped in, did some good things. It’s hard to rotate four, and wish him
nothing but the best.”
(On if the performance of RB Travis Etienne Jr. or the rookies made him more comfortable to
make the trade) “Yeah, it was a combination. Combination of all those things.”
(On what makes Bengals QB Joe Burrow special) “His ability to create is elite. The accuracy,
the pinpoint of it, his ability to put balls in tight spaces, give those guys opportunities. He
knows them so well and what they do well and how they want the ball thrown to them. It’s
clear that they have chemistry even when last week’s output wasn’t maybe as much as
they’ve been used to, you can still see that there were some moments where it was like,
woah, that was pretty good. So, it’s a huge challenge for us. I’ve got a ton of respect for Zac
[Bengals Head Coach Zac Taylor] and what he’s been able to do there over the years and
Joe’s a special player.”
(On how Burrow performs against the blitz) “He can get it out. You’ve got to take some of
the air out of the coverage, and it’s hard to give him a ton of space, but it’s feast or famine.
You go up and press him, you get too much on him, who knows what it could be, and it’s
just one of those combinations. He’s a smart player, he knows how to get to zero audibles
and checks and understands the game. So, it’s going to be a little bit of a chess match.”
(On DE Trey Hendrickson) “No, he’s on one side for the most part, and yeah, it’s a challenge
for sure. He’s a player that can wreck the game. Obviously, last week he was more so
getting back into it, didn’t play every snap, but anticipate him playing more as he continues
to get comfortable and get more acclimated, but definitely somebody that can wreck the
game.”
(On if he learns something about the team going into a road environment) “Yeah, I do. I
think that obviously going into New Orleans was a good deal and the same thing with Miami
in terms of just handling it the right way and coming together a little bit more as a team.
Smaller group, obviously, now going up to Cincinnati. So, great opportunity for us as a team
to continue to come together and get to know each other more and go through things
together as a team more. So, I’m actually looking forward to it.”
(On if WR/DB Travis Hunter will play more on defense because of Bengals WRs Ja’Marr
Chase and Tee Higgins) “Likely. It’ll be a likely uptick. It’s more so, going into Week 1 it was
okay, we know that it’s not going to be a ton on defense. The goal is to increase and
continue to increase. It just so happens that we’re playing Cincinnati with two good
wideouts this week.”
(On the duo of Chase and Higgins) “It’s hard to find them. I mean, there’s some good
tandems out there for sure, but the way they’ve done it at a high level now for a number of
years, the chemistry, they go to a Super Bowl, they’ve won, they’ve known how to win. Zac’s
done a great job there with getting those guys where they are now. They’ve played in a
difficult division. They’ve played a ton of difficult games, tight games over the years. They’ve
pulled some of those out in some critical moments. Play Kansas City tough every year, so
this is a team that knows how to win. They’re well coached and they have some talent.”
(On OL Anton Harrison and if he’s on track to play) “Yeah, he is. He had a little back
soreness, but it’s part of it. I was pleased with Anton, especially in pass protection, the
whole group, but specifically Anton, and in the run game, did some really good things. So, I
was pleased with his effort, strain, the way that he was battling through a little bit of a knick
and battled through it. Obviously came out for a short period, but I was pleased with his
first outing.”
(On the opportunity in front of RBs LeQuint Allen Jr. and Bhayshul Tuten) “Yeah, I think that
without having to say much to them, they understand based on the move. So, even when
Tuten did get in and get a couple of carries, he didn’t have a ton, and I think he had a seven-
or eight-yard run or whatever it was where there wasn’t much going on at the line of
scrimmage. He made a great cut, got vertical. Another one, he gets hit at the end – kind of
towards, it wasn’t quite four minute, but we were running at that point. Hit behind the line
of scrimmage, gets positive yards, it gets back to the line of scrimmage and then Quint on a
critical third down, comes in, gets a five- or six-yard run and has a good blitz pickup. So, it’s
opportunity for those guys for sure to step up and give us quality snaps.”
(On the returners for special teams) “We’re going to work on some guys, so Parker [WR
Parker Washington], Tuten, all those guys will get some, Quint still getting some back there,
getting a couple other guys some reps today as well.”
(On the performance of WR Dyami Brown) “I thought he did some good things. He only had
three or four [catches], whatever it was, but a big critical catch before the half on the
dagger, critical fourth down where he trips, he might have had a little bit more, he was
pissed at himself. Then, he has the curl, which was a good throwing catch. So, the one
thing about Dyami in the game that did really show up was his effort without the ball in his
hands, helping down the field blocking, motions, just doing the right things. I was pleased
with his outing as well, and just like with all those wideouts, you want to get them more. The
goal is you want everybody to touch the ball, you want everybody to get included, but also
there’s some games that become ones that you just kind of try to win.”
(On if RB Tank Bigsby asked to be traded) “No, there was none of those conversations.”
(On the importance of returns) “Yeah, I think it’s definitely stressed a little bit more because
of the rules and all that, but I didn’t necessarily feel like any of our returners did anything
quite crazy, dynamic that we couldn’t hold off on. We need to probably improve some of
our blocking, we’ve got to be a little bit better on the first and second level, some guys, to
give those guys a little bit more room, but also so much of that is making people miss,
having vision, seeing it and just hitting it. So, I think we can look to improve there.”
(On the cores of his coaching philosophy that have to be elevated to win on the road) “I
think you’re going on the road playing a team that plays in a physical division that has
played in a lot of physical football games over the course of their last four years or so. That
has to be our style of play, needs to show up this week, and then also, hey, facing adversity
again, right? Like, yeah, Sunday that was okay, lightning delay. It wasn’t really adversity; it
wasn’t, so it was a glitch. So, it was great that we handled it the right way and all that, but
like, okay, Ja’Marr Chase gets one. I mean, it’s likely they’re going to catch one. It is what it
is. Just move on, who cares? Play the next play and that mentality of, okay, they get one,
shoot, here we go, we’re going to go get one, and just going and continue to compete
regardless of what just occurred. That’s not what we want to focus on. We want to focus on
that process.”
(On the expected growth from QB Trevor Lawrence this week) “I think that when you look at
the operation, the way he handled things, all very, very positive. Made some critical third-
down conversions and especially when we were trying to extend some drives in the second
half, even after having a difficult third quarter, you look at really the sequence of
incomplete to Travis [Hunter] on the bootleg, incomplete to BT [WR Brian Thomas Jr.] on the
corner route, third-and-10 dart to Dyami on the curl. So, it’s like, okay, it’s there. It’s just the
consistency of it, not having those five to six plays that you could be sitting there at 25-for-
31 for 200-plus, and now you’re like, okay, shoot, this is a good outing. So, I think there were
great things to work from and I do believe we can continue to see an improvement week in
and week out.”
(On the amount of game balls given out) “Five, maybe? Five, six. So, Etienne, the whole O-
line. I mean it’s like, they all had no sacks. 200 yards [rushing]. Yeah. Foye [LB Foye
Oluokun], J-Lew [CB Jourdan Lewis], Logan [P Logan Cooke].”
(On what impresses him about CB Jourdan Lewis) “Yeah, I mean, since the first
conversation we had when we got here in pro free agency, it was very clear that he was
wanting to take the next step in his career. Not just in play and commitment and all that
stuff, but more in the leadership role. That was something that he felt he could help provide
and that does have some natural leadership skills and the toughness, the grit, the
competitiveness, that does rub off on guys. It has rubbed off on guys. He’s a great
communicator. He is demanding and challenging of his teammates and coaches. So, I’ve
been very pleased with him so far.”
(On TE Brenton Strange) “That was cool to see, huh? He just plays his tail off, it’s just so
cool to see, because if you are other guys looking at that and you’re like, well, he’s playing
that way, it’s hard to lose the standard. The standard needs to continue to rise. When you
see a guy like that playing unselfishly and physically throughout the entire game at every
moment, there’s not many plays that he takes off. So, that’s critical for our DNA, our
identity as a team, as an offense, and I was very pleased that he was able to get off to a
quick start.”
(On how the blocking and receiving ability of Strange is a weapon) “It’s huge because now
it’s not like you can get a huge tell on, okay, he’s on or off the ball, he is split out. Where is
he? Is it run, pass tendencies? Because he’s able to do some things in the run game that
allow you to stay balanced and then also in the pass game, run after catch and go make
some difficult catches as well. So definitely somebody we want to continue to work with.”
QUARTERBACK TREVOR LAWRENCE
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2025
(On the operation and conversions on third down) “Yeah, I thought third down was good for
us besides some of the longer yardage situations we were in, and I thought we did a nice
job converting and we left a couple out there too. So really, I thought we did a nice job. Guys
ran good routes, were in the right spot in zones, on time and I felt like we were synced up
and well timed up on a lot of those routes and those plays. So, felt good, had some good
conversions and like I said can definitely improve still though, which is a good thing.”
(On if he can sense differences in the offense after one game) “Yeah, I think it’s always –
even just from the schedule standpoint like everyone does things a little bit different. So,
getting our first game week under our belt last week and we’re a little more familiar with the
layout, the schedule, kind of what day in, day out looks like and the preparation process
with this staff and with us players and how we’re going to do things feels a little more
comfortable. So obviously today, it’s always first day of the week you get your install in and
your plan and you’re ironing some things out and there’s some things that you’ve got to look
at and make corrections. There’s always some of that, but I thought the guys flew around
and did some things well today.”
(On what the Bengals defense showed last week) “They did a nice job, obviously getting
their getting their hands on some passes and getting some turnovers. Those were big in the
right spot at the right time, guys making plays. It kind of changed the game. Obviously with
Hendrickson [DE Trey Hendrickson], just always have to know where he’s at and he’s a
great player. He has proven himself in this league time and time again, so give him his
respect obviously with our preparation and just knowing where he is at, he is a really good
player and have to take care of him, so that’s obviously something there. Just the defense
was flying around, I think made a lot of plays, did a nice job in the run game, it is really like I
said, creating turnovers in the back end. That’s the name of the game and they created a
couple of them, so it’s a good defense that’s flying around. A few of the guys have been
there for a while, a bunch of the leaders on that defense.”
(On how he is preparing for a new Bengals defensive scheme) “Yeah, it’s always a
challenge. New coordinator, beginning of the season, both of those things present some
challenges. Just how much have you really seen as far as NFL tape of this defense? Not a
ton, but you have the preseason, you got last week, you got some stuff they did at Notre
Dame. So, you kind of look at all of it and take it for what it is and try to put together all the
things that they’ve done and what’s the common themes, what do they like to do? Every
defense and every offense has an identity of what they want to do, who they are, what
coverages do they want to run, what pressures do they want to bring? And they can always
do different things each week and have a different plan. That’s what everyone does. You
have some wrinkles and we’ll adjust to those, but you can kind of tell structure and identity
who they want to be.”
(On if he was surprised by the trade of RB Tank Bigsby) “Yeah, things like that that’s the
hardest part of this business, this sport. Seeing guys get moved, and I’m going to miss Tank.
Obviously, I’ve been with him for a few years, he’s done a nice job. He has given a lot to this
organization and I’m thankful for what he has done. So yeah, that’s a friend of mine but you
look at the guys that we have and what they’ve done and they’ve definitely earned the
opportunity. Not to say that that Tank didn’t either, but they earned the opportunity. They’ve
been playing really well. Travis [RB Travis Etienne Jr.] obviously did a really great job.
Sunday, I was proud of the way he played. It was awesome to see. Then the young guys
have earned opportunities. It’s hard. When you have four [running backs] like that, it is just
hard to get everyone touches and to make it make sense, so I understand kind of what
we’re doing with the young guys. And those guys are ready and they’ve prepared and it’s a
good room and obviously, we’re going to miss Tank. It’s a guy I’ll keep in touch with but wish
him nothing but the best.”
(On what makes a great relationship between a quarterback and his wide receivers) “Yeah,
it’s a lot of things. I think time is one of them, reps, just that experience playing a lot
together that’s really what it is. You learn a lot about a guy, whether them learning about me
as a quarterback or you learning about them as a receiver. How they run routes, when you
get man coverage, how every route is a little bit different with each guy, what they like, what
they don’t like. Reading body language, I think that’s a big thing as a quarterback is knowing
what guys are going to do before they do it because you’ve gotten so many reps. Whether
that’s watching tape, also preparation of what the defense is going to do, guys being on the
same page. I think all that plays into it, and they’ve obviously done a nice job over in
Cincinnati and they have a lot of chemistry, and those guys have played really well
together.”
(On if he gets a heads up about trades) “I wasn’t in here. I wasn’t in the building. It was kind
of our off time so found out when that one broke but every situation’s I guess a little bit
different.”
(On what impressed him about the offensive line against Carolina) “Yeah, just the
physicality. Every play, whether it was pass pro, the run game, obviously you rushed like we
did, ran the ball that well, those guys have to be doing something good up front and so you
see that and that stands out, just the physicality, moving people, the communication, I
think everyone was on the same page. That’s a huge part of the run game and then in pass
protection, just the extra efforts getting the last touches, last shoves on guys so that I’m
clean back there but also if I need to escape, I have lanes to do that. So, they did a great
job. Anytime you have no sacks in the NFL, that’s hard to do. There’s a lot of good defenses,
a lot of good defensive players. Guys that’s their goal is to sack the quarterback and these
guys did a great job up front. So, it’s awesome when you can not get hit, especially, I hadn’t
been hit in a while and still haven’t, didn’t get hit that much on Sunday. So those guys
protected me and they’re a great group.”
(On how much fun it was watching TE Brenton Strange’s viral block) “It was fun. It was fun,
that part of it and just to see a guy that plays so hard and it’s part of what we all look to on
offense. And there’s a lot of guys that play hard on our offense but he’s a guy, he just does
things the right way. And you can point to, you could pick pretty much any play in the whole
game and he’s always playing as hard as possible. I think it’s cool too as a quarterback to
see his skillset and him get some opportunities in the passing game too. It’s cool to see that
payoff for a guy that really works his tail off and puts everything into it. It’s nice to see him
also get the payoff in the passing game and get an opportunity to get the ball in his hands,
but he earns it every snap by the way he blocks, the way he prepares, the way he practices.”
(On the team developing a physical identity) “I think it’s a start. It’s never a finished product.
Every week is a different week. It’s a different challenge. We did our job Sunday, we got the
win, we executed fairly well. Still a lot of things to clean up, like we talked about penalties
and getting ourselves in some bad situations but as far as when we ran a play and we didn’t
have a penalty, we were pretty good, we executed pretty well and we were on the same
page. So, I think it’s a testament to our preparation, how the guys worked. We were ready to
go for the game, but we’ve got to do it again this week. It’s a new challenge every single
week. That’s the challenge of the NFL is consistency.”
(On what’s a successful game two for him) “Just more and more consistency. I think I felt
very prepared going into the game, knew the plan, knew the plan really well and I thought
we had a good plan. I think just from a passing game standpoint, just being a little more
consistent. I thought I left a few out there for sure that I can make, just a couple more plays.
Obviously, the turnover is something you want to have back and limit those. If we can take
care of the ball and play like we did, especially as well as the defense plays, we should be
able to win a lot of games if we can do that. So, just taking care of the ball that in that
situation, long yardage just doing the smart thing. So, there’s a couple plays that I think just
finding a little bit more consistency is really the objective for me is just every play treating it
as its own, continuing to play like that throughout the whole game. Don’t have a series or
two where I feel like I miss a couple throws or mentally kind of get off a little bit. Just stay
consistent and sharp.”
(On facing the Bengals playmakers and if it gives the team an edge) “Yeah, I think as a
competitor naturally you treat them all the same. That’s what you say and that’s what you
do. Every game means the same. You’re trying to get another win, you’re trying to just do
your job that week, find a way to win the game and move on but naturally as a competitor
you do want to show, hey, we can match up with these guys whether it’s offense, defense
but I’ve always said I don’t play against their offense. So, something you’re trying not to
think too much about but you also do think about the firepower they have over there and we
trust our defense 100% and I know we’re going to have a good plan going in and they’re
going to do a great job but you’re also ready on offense to do our job. Whether that’s, hey,
however many points we need to score to win, whether that’s a lot or a little, it just depends
on the situation. So, we’re always ready for that and I think as a competitor you want that
from the guys on the team, to take that as a challenge because it is another good team in
the AFC, playoff-type team and it’s just the next challenge for us.”
