An upward bit of momentum for a Bengals RB with a lot to prove.
Chris Evans has been a forgotten man of sorts for the Cincinnati Bengals at the running back spot.
Evans, a sixth-rounder in 2021, had problems getting on the field over the first two years of his career.
But the last handful of days have provided some notable momentum for Evans. He had some nice reps during the first preseason game against the Green Bay Packers.
Then, he followed that up in the first practice after the game on Sunday by getting notable praise for a big pass-blocking rep and while scoring a touchdown, as noted by observers below.
Given things like pass-blocking have kept Evans off the field in prior seasons, it’s a nice sign. And Evans seems to be making the most of his chance while Trayveon Williams is out with an injury and he directly competes with rookie Chase Brown for the right to back up Joe Mixon.
The Cincinnati Bengals didn’t make many major changes to the running back room this offseason despite outside expectations.
That means, going into training camp, Chris Evans remains a factor in the conversation. Here’s a look at his profile as we continue counting down to the season opener.
Experience: 3 years (Round 6, 2021)
Age: 25
College: Michigan
2022 PFF Grade: n/a
Numbers to Know: 17 regular season rushing attempts and 18 catches over two seasons.
Resume and Outlook: Evans was an exciting value pick in 2021, especially because of his versatility as a receiver out of the backfield. But he had a hard time making headway past fellow backups like Samaje Perine and his lack of playing time makes it easy for outsiders to suggest he’s not trusted as a blocker yet. He can still make headway as a returner on special teams, but the team just used a draft pick on Chase Brown to add more competition behind Joe Mixon.
If you’re looking for a fun two-hour escape from the world, Ghosted just might do the trick.
Apple TV+ just dropped its latest original movie, Ghosted — a romantic-slash-action-comedy starring Chris Evans and Ana de Armas, and the initial reviews are, well, mixed. (The Guardian‘s Benjamin Lee called it a “catastrophically misfiring blockbuster” and the New York Times said it was “so flimsy and so insubstantial that it’s practically vaporous.” Yikes.)
But hear me out: Critically panned as it might be, Ghosted is also a lot of fun. Cole (Evans) and Sadie (de Armas) share a meet-cute at a farmer’s market before spending the day exploring Washington D.C. and sharing a seemingly romantic evening together.
When Sadie doesn’t return any of his multiple texts the next day, Cole decides to track her down (by virtue of a tracking tile on his asthma inhaler) in England. Turns out, Sadie isn’t actually an art curator like she said, but a CIA operative smack dab in the middle of a crisis.
An adventure begins that takes them across the world as they evade mega bad guy Leveque (Adrien Brody) who is in possession of a weapon called Aztec and needs a code to unlock it.
The supporting cast of Amy Sedaris, Tate Donovan and Lizze Broadway as Cole’s family is outstanding, and there are quite a few cameos that will excite viewers. But most of all, Ghosted is just a fun way to tune out the world for two hours. It’s not going to win any awards — rom-coms rarely do — but it doesn’t need to. Evans and de Armas have enough electricity between them to power a small city, and the action sequences are exciting. It somehow works to have a former Captain America actively trying to avoid conflict only to be surprised when he finds himself in yet another jam. De Armas has proven time and time again with roles in No Time to Die, The Grey Man and Blade Runner 2049 that she’s cut out for action roles.
Ghosted had several laugh-out-loud funny moments, and at the very least, it’s 116 minutes of entertaining action featuring two very charismatic and good-looking people.
The rom-com genre has thrived with the extended options offered by streaming services, and Ghosted is no different. It’s a little ridiculous, and sure, you have to just accept that being a farmer is enough justification for Evans to be built like a Greek god. But it’s an escape and one that’s worth the time.
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Superstar actor Chris Evans is making the media rounds for Ghosted, the new action rom-com releasing on Apple TV+ on April 21. He stars, alongside Ana de Armas as Cole, as a guy who falls for her character Sadie before finding out she’s got a bit of an intense job as as secret agent.
This is a reunion for Evans and de Armas as the duo worked together on the Oscar-nominated Knives Out in 2022. While we’re all very excited for what will surely be a fun romp, there’s one thing more exciting that always comes from a Chris Evans press tour: Dodger content.
If you’re unfamiliar, Dodger is Evans’ adorable dog. Understandably, Dodger is heavily featured on his Instagram account:
Dodger is also a mainstay in conversations with the well-known dog lover.
During Monday’s Good Morning America interview, Evans bonded with host Robin Roberts over Dodger and his adoption story. While filming a scene at a dog shelter in Savannah, Evans connected with Dodger after finding out the canine extras were actually adoptable (and not dog actors). In a lovely and heartwarming detail, Evans added that seven total dogs were adopted that day by crew members.
“Look at those eyes … cuteness overload!” 🐶@ChrisEvans is the sweetest dog dad. He adopted Dodger when he was working on a film in Savannah: "I rounded the corner and saw him and just knew right away." pic.twitter.com/7FWFyXGVRI
Evans famously broke the internet after Buzzfeed’s puppy interview, so what we’re hearing is that every interview going forward should reserve time for him to gush over the wonderfulness of dogs.
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Then there’s star nose tackle DJ Reader. Best guess was he’d be able to make it back after the bye given the expected timeline of his injury. Taylor says the team will make a decision next week but sounded positive on the timeline.
Meaning, the Bengals are lucky to have a bye week right now. It won’t get them back someone as important as No. 1 corner Chidobe Awuzie, but three key names — and one top-five player at his position (Reader) — could be back for Week 11 against the Steelers.
A few injury updates, per Zac Taylor;
Dax Hill (shoulder) and Chris Evans (knee, PCL) are considerer week to week.
DJ Reader “optimistic it’ll be sooner rather than later.” Likely to make a decision next Monday.
During Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers, Evans exited in the first quarter with a knee injury and the team wasted little time in ruling him out.
That was a similar decision on his status to that of cornerback Chidobe Awuzie the week prior, which might suggest similar severity as the No. 1 corner battles a season-long injury.
Evans appeared to suffer the injury on the opening kickoff and attempted to play through it before leaving. Samaje Perine remains the primary backup behind Joe Mixon and the team also has Trayveon Williams on the roster.
Last week during a loss to the Browns, Evans made a big play on a 26-yard catch down the sideline, then promptly played just one more snap the rest of the game.
Offensive coordinator Brian Callahan fielded questions on this subject and explained some of the usage.
“Samaje is probably, this year, in particular, one of the best pass protecting backs in football. He’s been phenomenal in that role,” Callahan said, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. “And so he’s got to take that role on third downs. And so Chris has there’s limited places for him to fit in. And those are the top two guys. We do have roles for him. We have more plays for him that we practice than they get called sometimes.
Callahan noted that on the 26-yard gain, Evans was matched up with a linebacker and the ball wouldn’t have gone his way if it had been a cornerback.
But detractors will understandably point out that the offense could try to find more looks for Evans in those types of situations and if necessary, reduce Mixon’s struggling workload.
At the same time, though, Evans is just unfortunate to sit on the depth chart behind Samaje Perine given the veteran’s skill in key areas. Barring something dramatic, it doesn’t sound like the Bengals will change things up anytime soon.
While stars like Tom Brady and the No. 2 selection in the 2022 NFL draft, Aidan Hutchinson, didn’t suit up for Week 2 of preseason action, there were still some highlight reel plays made by former Wolverines.
The first came by second-year wide receiver Nico Collins for the Houston Texans.
Michigan fans are very familiar with Collins’ jump ball ability. It seemed whenever the Wolverines threw in the direction of Collins, he came down with it. He finished the game against the Dolphins with four catches, 48 yards and one touchdown.
The second former Michigan highlight came from the 31st pick of the 2022 NFL draft, Daxton Hill.
Dax Hill was a first-round pick because of plays like this 😱 @daxhill5
Hill made a spectacular dive for the interception, and he showed why he was a first-round steal for the Bengals. Cincinnati will have the pleasure of lining Hill up in a variety of ways during the NFL season.
Former running back Chris Evans made the Week 1 highlights, and he made the them yet again.
In the first week of preseason, the former Michigan running back had a fantastic carry, but this week he ran for a 71-yard kick return. Evans is vying for a big role behind Joe Mixon this year in Cincinnati, and his ability to return kicks will just add extra value for the Bengals.
OUR GREATEST QUESTION ABOUT THE MCU IS FINALLY ANSWERED
SPOILER ALERT: Everything that follows below is about the post credit scene from She-Hulk episode 1. If you haven’t watched it and you’re interested in watching it, please go watch it before you read this.
“CAPTAIN AMERICA FUUUUUU-.” And there we have it, y’all. We finally have our answer.
For years and years and years, Marvel Cinematic Universe fans have been discussing one thing: Whether Captain America was a virgin or not. This has easily become one of the most divisive (and hilarious) debates about MCU canon.
We know Cap spent his post-freeze years mostly defending the world. He didn’t really have time to settle into any love interests. We think maybe there was a spark there with Natasha Romanov. And, clearly, there was something there with Sharon Carter — the niece of the love interest he left behind in the past.
But it’s pretty clear he never knocked boots with any of them. So if not then, when?
Well, we’ve got an answer, folks. She-Hulk just gave it to us.
Spoilers for She-Hulk episode 1 – – – – – LMAOOOO THIS IS THE GREATEST THING EVER CAPTAIN AMERICA FUCKS #SheHulkpic.twitter.com/Z1AGrybpbc
ROGERS DID IT, Y’ALL. Apparently, it was with someone on a 1943 USO tour back in his heyday. Not sure who it was or when it happened, but apparently he told Bruce Banner that it actually happened.
Shouts to Jen Walters and her savvy legal skills for coaxing Banner into admitting this. And also shoutout to her for giving us this.
It may be preseason, but the former Michigan football players are out making some great plays in game one of preseason action.
Aidan Hutchinson, the second overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft, made his NFL playing debut on Friday in a Detroit Lions uniform. Right away he did something that Michigan fans will remember quite well from his time in Ann Arbor, he made an offensive tackle look silly, and he got right into the backfield for a tackle-for-loss. Lions fans will have plenty of this to look forward to.
Devin Funchess, former wide receiver/tight end hybrid at Michigan, made his Lions debut on Friday as well. Funchess was a second-round selection by the Carolina Panthers back in 2015, but the injury bug has plagued the former Wolverine. He signed with both the Packers and Colts, but never had much playing time due to injuries, but he is trying to salvage his career back home in Michigan. The, now NFL tight end, scored a one-yard touchdown on Friday, and he also made a highlight reel hurdle. Funchess is trying to earn a No. 2 tight end role with the Lions.
Lastly, former Michigan running back, Chris Evans had a 70-yard run on Friday with the Bengals. There ended up being a flag called on the play, but Evans still showed his incredible burst off the line of scrimmage and outran just about the entire Cardinals’ defense. Evans is hoping to earn more of a role with the Bengals this upcoming season behind Joe Mixon.
