Cashius Howell has wasted little time making his presence felt in Bengals camp, and the early buzz around the rookie edge rusher is coming from everywhere inside the building.
The No. 41 pick has spent most of his work with the second team behind Myles Murphy and free agent addition Boye Mafe, but the flashes have been loud. Howell has shown the burst and bend that helped make him such an appealing draft choice, and that skill set has already pushed him into some first-team work during the unscripted portion that ended Thursday’s practice.
That was the first time Howell said he got a full run with the starters.
“I’ve had a few reps (with the starters) here and there, but today was the first real day that I’ve gotten good, solid, quality reps,” he said. “It gives me a little bit of confidence. But regardless of who lines up in front of me, I want to make sure I’m coming out and bringing the same competitive performance, the same energy.”
He backed that up with a strong day against Orlando Brown Jr., beating the veteran left tackle twice on Thursday. One win came on a speed rush around the edge. The other came with power, Howell getting underneath Brown and driving him backward.
Head coach Zac Taylor said before practice that Howell’s workload was likely to grow because of the different looks he needs to see.
“Cashius has been running a lot with the two’s right now. He hasn’t gone against Orlando and Amarius (Mims) as much as he’s gone some of the other guys.
So I think once he starts to see some other players and the challenges you face when you face different styles of tackles, that’ll help improve his game. And we’ll get him those looks to see where he can really ramp up.
“But No. 1, he’s been really physical,” Taylor continued. “He’s really embraced the physicality of playing defensive end.
That’s a great starting point for a rookie, where he’s not afraid to take on blocks and really strain and make some plays in the run game. He’s got natural pass-rush ability, which shows up on a daily basis.
He can drive us crazy on offense because he’s really good at it.”
The praise has also come from the veterans who know exactly how tough a first camp can be. Myles Murphy, now in his third season, said the mental grind of camp can be just as sharp as the physical one, and he sees some of his own early path in Howell’s first week.
“I told Cash that whatever is the fastest way you can get comfortable with the playbook and build your confidence, do that,” Murphy said. “Not everything is cookie cutter.
Everyone’s different. I can’t say this is exactly how you should do it.
“But whatever he’s doing, something’s working,” Murphy added. “He’s doing really good.”
Mafe has been just as bullish on the rookie. He said he’s seen enough already to believe Howell’s ceiling is high once the game slows down for him.
“It’s very hard to do what he’s doing so early,” Mafe said. “It’s been exciting to see.
I’ve been saying he’s going to be a great player. I’ve always known that.
He has it in him. It’s just a matter of getting comfortable.
“Once he does, he's gonna be a dog in this league, and I can’t wait to see it.”
Howell said he feels the momentum building, even if he knows he’s nowhere near finished.
“I feel like at this point I’m starting to establish myself as a good player, but obviously there is still work to be done,” Howell said. “I wouldn’t say I’m happy with where I’m at, but I’m proud of the work I’ve put in.
“I know there’s definitely room for improvement, but I feel pretty good about how things have gone so far.”
Taylor’s view is more measured, with the bigger test coming over the full stretch of camp. The question, as he sees it, is whether Howell can keep stacking good days over the next 30 days.
“I believe we’re going to see that from him from everything I’ve known about him and seen from him,” Taylor said. “But we’ll just continue to see what just happens over the next couple of weeks.”
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