A day after Cam Taylor-Britt should have had an interception in the slot, on Tuesday he picked quarterback Joe Burrow to continue the Bengals defense's spring-time revival under new coordinator Al Golden during the last phase of voluntary workouts.

Taylor-Britt, like all the cornerbacks, is rotating in and out of the slot as Golden deepens the depth chart with experience instead of bodies. Making his first foray inside in his fourth NFL season, CTB made the change look easy as he out-leveraged tight end Mike Gesicki on an out route.

Golden says the Bengals are nowhere near making out a starting lineup. Taylor-Britt says it makes no difference. Inside or out. "I just want to play football."

He also smiled when asked if he's back to the level he was when he made the spectacular leaping one-handed interception on the sideline at Kansas City in the second game of last season. Before he bounced back from two benchings to play well in the Bengals' five-game winning streak that finished the season.

"I might be rookie year Cam, which is when we made the playoffs," said Taylor-Britt of his strong first season he capped with a snowy playoff pick in Buffalo in the AFC Divisional. "I think I've elevated my game every day, honestly."

Golden is not seeing the Taylor-Britt of last year. That works out nicely. Neither is Taylor-Britt. It's a start-from-scratch spring.

"Love his energry level. Love the way he practices. He's engaged every day in the meetings. He comes prepared," Golden said after Tuesday's practice. "He's got great answers, and he's got real talent. I think what we're starting to see is the transformation into skill in a variety of ways. Whether that's process, his preparation, his corner skill set, his ability to play nickel. It's the confluence of all those things.

"I think right now he's buying in and he's improving. You can't have continuous improvement without his preparation and process, and he owns both right now."

As for Taylor-Britt, he believes the Golden approach has helped his game elevate.

"Keeping stuff simple. Keeping everything the same thing in a couple of defenses," Taylor-Britt said. "Everything is the same, and not thinking as much. You hear one word and you know everything else, basically. And you use your tools in your toolbox for that."

Bengals cornerbacks coach Charles Burks has been a CTB guy since day one. They came in together in 2022, when Burks joined the Bengals two weeks after they were in the Super Bowl and two months before they took Taylor-Britt in the second round. Burks has been preaching consistency to him ever since, and he loves to hear the confidence.

"I like where he's at," Burks said after practice. "He has the skill set to cover, he has the skill set to make plays on the ball. He has the skill set to develop in all different areas. The thing with great and elite players is their entire approach is being consistent. And consistent people are going to be confident.

Muscle Memory

Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins looks as sleek as ever, but he says he's coming off a very different offseason. After missing five games last year with soft tissue issues, Higgins has returned looking to play all 17. Add that to last year's numbers of 911 yards and a career-high ten touchdowns.

Higgins said after Tuesday's practice he changed his offseason regimen looking to prevent injuries. He said he focused on both speed and strength.

"Get my muscles right. Make sure I know what I'm doing muscles-wise," said Higgins, who returned to his usual offseason trainer in Miami. "I did a lot of everything. I was on the track a lot. I was in the weight room a lot weightlifting."

He has no doubts what happens to this offense when he's healthy: "Definitely could be deadly."

Receivers Galore

Higgins has been impressed with two of the guys playing behind him and Ja’Marr Chase, particularly third-year receiver Andrei Iosivas. Iosivas has beefed up to 220 pounds, about 10-15 pounds more than last year, and has Higgins' eyes popping.

"Yoshi is teaching me things," Higgins said. "It's night and day from this year to last year … I have high expectations for Yosh. He's bigger, stronger and faster, twitchier. It's been great to see."

Higgins also likes the improvement of sophomore Jermaine Burton, trying to come back from rookie growing pains after a season he caught just four balls.

"He's being more consistent," Higgins said. "He's come in and out of his routes like he should be, and he's not asking too many questions because he knows. That's the way we want it."

Slants and Screens

Add this to the legend of Seamless Joe. Even if it was merely a Tuesday session mired in the last days of the voluntary spring and a week from the start of mandatory minicamp. A galaxy far, far away from the opener in Cleveland.

The play after the famously demanding Burrow got picked off by Taylor-Britt, he flicked a touchdown pass to Chase running past cornerback DJ Turner II down the right side.

"He might be pissed off if it doesn't go his way, for sure," said a smiling Higgins. "I knew he was pissed off when he threw that pick."

Gesicki loved the sudden change.

"I hope he wasn't pissed off because the pick was targeted towards me," Gesicki said. "You guys are laughing. I hope he's laughing. The defense is still celebrating, and before you know it, the offense is going deep. Good, competitive stuff. Fun practice to be a part of." …

They've been talking about Burton's maturity this spring, and there was a public sign Tuesday. The man stood in front of his locker for 15 minutes and answered tough questions about a hard rookie year. Basically, he didn't talk much about '24. Instead, he says he's putting all his energy and thoughts into the upcoming season.

Asked what is the one thing he learned from last season, Burton said, "I learned a lot of things last year, but you really have to be a professional in his league."

He says he's majoring in consistency, per advice from Chase, as well as spending time with his mates.

"Come up with better habits, better routines," Burton said. "Try and stay consistent. Consistency is key. I feel a lot more comfortable with my teammates. Created a lot of bonding and relationships with these guys over the course of the offseason. I feel like I'm closer with the guys. I know my ability. I know my potential and I know what I need to do to show it and I'm doing all these things right now. Hopefully you guys see it real soon." …