Bengals explain why rookie Jermaine Burton didn’t play until late vs. Bucs

A Bengals rookie lived up to the hype in his first preseason game.

The Cincinnati Bengals confused fans on Saturday night with the usage of breakout rookie receiver Jermaine Burton.

Burton, who has looked to be in serious contention for the third spot on the depth chart during training camp, didn’t see the field until late in the third quarter against the Buccaneers.

But when Burton did get on the field, he wound up scoring a huge touchdown and then had a 38-yard reception later in the game.

After, Bengals head coach Zac Taylor explained.

“There’s just zero rhythm whatsoever (in the) second quarter midway through the third quarter to where we weren’t focused on just getting guys in there,” Taylor said, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “We focused on getting first downs so we could run the ball and call some stuff off of it. We were able to get him in there late in the game and target him a couple times. The quarterback did a good job finding him and he did a great job when the ball went to him. That’s what we want to see from him.”

Bengals fans might not vibe with that one — what better way to get a struggling, Jake Browning-led offense going than by getting a player like Burton in the lineup?

Either way, Burton showed off his obvious talent and provided more proof that those who said he fell too far in the draft were right.

After Saturday, perhaps the coaching staff will be a little more focused on getting him some reps.

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