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Jack Endries’ Scout-Team Reps Have the Bengals Ready to Lean on Him With Erick All Hurt
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- Jack Endries’ Scout-Team Reps Have the Bengals Ready to Lean on Him With Erick All Hurt
Cincinnati might need another tight end to step up, and rookie Jack Endries is getting the nod. Erick All Jr. hurt his right knee in Sunday's 35-13 win in Baltimore, thinning out an already banged-up room. Zac Taylor made it clear on Monday that the Bengals trust Endries to handle the spotlight.
Endries spent weeks grinding under the radar, but injuries to Tanner Hudson and now All blew the depth chart wide open. Taylor had high praise for the rookie's work ethic.
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"Jack's done a really good job preparing himself," Taylor said. "You've got to know every tight end spot. We're fortunate that Jack has put himself in a position to be ready, and now he's certainly going to get a lot more opportunities."
Backup tight ends usually fight for scraps during regular game-plan periods, but Endries built his stamina running the scout team. Taylor talked about how going up against Cincinnati's top-ranked defense every single day gave the young target a massive development boost.
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"He gets more practice reps than everybody else because of the scout team," Taylor added. "He takes almost all the scout team reps. So it's not like he's not out there getting real game reps against a defense."
Facing that front seven five days a week gave the rookie high-speed repetitions against starting NFL talent. The only upgrade now is catching passes from Joe Burrow with the first-team unit on game day.
"Now he's going to get it from Joe and he's going to get those reps with the starting group, but he's up for it," Taylor said. "It's good for him to see and he'll be able to do it."
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Cincinnati brought back Cam Grandy to the 53-man roster to help with the dirty-work blocking, but Endries is the guy Taylor trusts to handle snaps across multiple packages.
All exited Sunday's game early after posting three catches for 26 yards. The setback is an absolute gut punch for the young tight end, who injured the very same knee that required surgery at Iowa and again during his rookie campaign.
Giving Burrow More Options
Losing All forces the offense to reshuffle how it uses its tight ends. Mike Gesicki does his best work split out like a big wide receiver, while Drew Sample does the dirty work as an extra blocker on the line. All was special because he did both.
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Grandy gives the team an extra run-blocker, but Endries is the only other guy in that room with true dual-threat ability. Cincinnati loves putting multiple tight ends on the field. Heavy formations force defenses to keep bigger linebackers out there, which makes life much easier for Joe Burrow when he drops back to throw.
Burrow tore Baltimore apart in the second half by targeting the soft spots underneath. Endries has the hands to become Burrow's new safety valve when safeties back off to double Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.
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This story was originally published by Athlon on Oct 27, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add Athlon as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
