Bengals scouting report: Returns of Joe Burrow and Joe Mixon bolster offense

Sunday: Noon at Paul Brown Stadium (Ch. 9 and KFAN-FM 100.3)

ABOUT THE BENGALS

• After a 4-11-1 season, the Bengals continued a roster overhaul around quarterback Joe Burrow, moving on from familiar stars like receiver A.J. Green and defensive tackle Geno Atkins this offseason. First-round receiver Ja'Marr Chase and veteran linemen Riley Reiff and Trey Hendrickson, who had 13.5 sacks last year in New Orleans, were their top additions.

• Joe Mixon returns after appearing in just six games last year due to a foot injury. The former 2017 second-round pick, selected seven spots after the Vikings' Dalvin Cook, is one of the league's most versatile backs. He racked up 2,888 yards from scrimmage in the 2018 and 2019 seasons.

• The Bengals defense has an experienced safety tandem in Vonn Bell and Jessie Bates, who were the leading tacklers last season. But Cincinnati lost cornerback William Jackson in free agency, and former Vikings first-round corner Trae Waynes has been ruled out because of injury.

• The Vikings last played at Cincinnati in 2013, when coach Mike Zimmer was in his sixth and final season as the Bengals' defensive coordinator. Minnesota is 7-6 all-time against Cincinnati, last coming away with a 34-7 win in December 2017.

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT | QB Joe Burrow

• Burrow, the first overall pick in 2020, has been reunited with Chase, his top target at LSU, while returning from a season-ending knee injury in his 10th start. He played just three snaps this preseason, throwing an incomplete pass, but said his availability for the season opener was never in doubt. He'll start against the Vikings less than 10 months after an ACL tear.

• The former Heisman Trophy winner has a talented arsenal in receivers Tee Higgins, Tyler Boyd and Chase, and Mixon in the backfield. Expectations remain high after he averaged 269 passing yards per game while throwing 13 scores to five picks in an abbreviated rookie season.

• Bengals head coach Zac Taylor on Burrow: "This isn't a knock on any other quarterbacks I've had, but he really has a knack for extending the play. That's been his M.O. his whole career. For me, it's an adjustment. Part of the reason you draft him is because of his extended playmaking ability, getting the ball downfield and scoring points. You don't ever want to neuter that."

• Zimmer on Burrow: "I was very impressed with him in the things he's done in the NFL. He gets the ball out quick, he's very accurate, moves well in the pocket; very, very competitive, really good competitor, I think. You can tell all that stuff on last year's tape."

COACH SPEAK | Zac Taylor

• Taylor enters his third season as Bengals head coach, with a 6-25-1 record (.203) in the regular season and no playoff appearances. At 38 years old, Taylor is the second-youngest NFL head coach, older than only the Rams' Sean McVay.

• It's been a bumpy road so far for Taylor, the former Dolphins offensive coordinator and Rams quarterback coach, who has overseen the league's 29th- and 30th-ranked scoring offenses in his two years with Cincinnati.

• Taylor on Mixon's return: "He's been healthy now for the better part of the offseason and summer, and he can focus on doing things now to become a complete player. He's been a great player in this league, and now Gio [Bernard] is gone, it allows some responsibilities to bubble over. You want Joe in on third down; we still intend to throw him the ball."

• Taylor on second-year left tackle Jonah Williams: "I've seen a lot of progress. Sometimes you just don't mention his name for a long time; him and Riley [Reiff] both. That's a really good thing. So, we don't sit up here and talk about him much, and that's good. That means he's doing his job."