Bengals cornerback Tacario Davis (20) catches a throw during a rookie mini camp workout at the Bengals practice facility in downtown Cincinnati on Friday, May 8, 2026.
Bengals cornerback Tacario Davis (20) catches a throw during a rookie mini camp workout at the Bengals practice facility in downtown Cincinnati on Friday, May 8, 2026.
Home » News » National News » Ohio » An unexpected Bengals rookie is starting to emerge as possible starter
Ohio

An unexpected Bengals rookie is starting to emerge as possible starter

Cincinnati Bengals rookie Tacario Davis is sort of flying under the radar at cornerback this summer. 

When the Bengals drafted the huge, 6’4” Davis, it sort of got handwaved away as a niche pick on a player who can match up against tight ends, but was still a few years out from being an every-down starter. 

Video Thumbnail

But cornerbacks like Dax Hill really like what they’ve seen from the rookie so far in minicamp. 

“Fluid in coverage. He brings us a lot at the line of scrimmage with his length,” Hill told Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “You don’t see guys (tall corners) like that nowadays. That was kind of back in the day. His size brings an intimidating presence.”

In fact, Davis had such a strong showing over the spring and into minicamp that Hobson wrote that he could be one of the “three best cornerbacks going into the preseason games” alongside Hill and DJ Turner. 

As outsiders, it’s hard to get a read on what the Bengals will do at cornerback. Hill can play inside and out, but wants to play on the boundary and has been better there. Jalen Davis, Ja’Sir Taylor and Josh Newton figure to fight it out for the slot job. 

One thing for sure? Tacario Davis will be in the mix somewhere, even if it’s as a specialist who matches up with big opposing weapons in specific packages on a game-to-game basis. 

This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: An unexpected Bengals rookie is starting to emerge as possible starter

Reporting by Chris Roling, Bengals Wire / Bengals Wire

USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Image

By Chris Roling, Bengals Wire | USA TODAY Network

Related posts

Leave a Comment