We are standing at Tycen Anderson’s locker this week surrounded by a force field of high intensity.

Anderson, the Bengals' most valuable special teamer, is sifting through his iPad. A copy of Tony Evans' Kingdom Man sits nearby, along with a daily devotional book. Anderson begins each day with prayer, meditation and jotting thoughts in a journal before clicking the links of the likes of Marvin Mims Jr.

While Bengals Triple Crown winner Ja’Marr Chase meets the Broncos' reigning Defensive Player of the Year Patrick Surtain in the Monday night marquee matchup (8:15-Cincinnati's Channel 9) at Mile High, Anderson and Mims provide their own Pro Bowl act.

Mims, a third-year wide receiver, is Denver's two-time All-Pro return man churning out award numbers again in the first three games of the season. Anderson is a member of the league's elite corps of kicking-game players looking to break through into the Pro Bowl.

Take it from Darrin Simmons, the NFL's longest-tenured special teams coordinator in his 23^rd season in Cincinnati. Anderson is one of the game's best running the field on special teams.

"My opinion, he is. I don't know how everybody else feels. But around here, we feel he's a pretty good player," said Simmons after Friday's walk-through before practice.

"Not only is it the player's ability to play multiple positions. More importantly, it's an understanding of what you have to do for certain positions. He does a good job studying the game, listening, taking coaching well, and he wants to excel. His attitude is spectacular. Everything you want in a teams player."

Anderson not only has links to Mims, who led the NFL in punt return average last season at 15.7 yards per return and currently is third at 17.2 after he ripped off a 32-yarder last week. Anderson also has a link to the Saints' 2022 special teams. That's because the Broncos' new special teams boss, the estimable Darren Rizzi, is coming from New Orleans.

He may not linger on that link.

"Not really," Anderson says. "I like to look at who I'm playing against. Not the scheme of the coach. As long as I know the type of scheme they're running stays consistent with the film, I know what to expect on certain punts and kickoffs."

Simmons expects enough of Anderson that he switched him on the punt team from gunner after last season's Pro Bowlish 10 tackles to personal protector. (PP). That's a huge shift in the world of the kicking game, as if Chase or Tee Higgins moved from wide receiver to quarterback.

The PP, who sets up between the long snapper and the punter, is responsible for setting the protections and calling the signals, no small thing in a season the Bengals have rookie William Wagner snapping.

"He's doing a good job just getting us into the right protection calls. Recognizing the fronts and being the quarterback of our protection and getting us in the correct calls," Simmons says. "There's no secret we have a rookie snapper, and some teams try to come after us to try to challenge him. I think Will has responded well to that.

"But I think Tycen is the one who has got us in the right call to be successful. He's done a good job getting us into the correct protection. He's also been doing well in coverage. It's a dual responsibility position for him."

According to the NFL, Anderson's five combined teams tackles put him in an early-season top 20 and way ahead of last year's pace. His tackles on kickoffs count, and his rover position in the middle of the line is going to be hunting Mims, seventh in kick returns with a 27-yard average that includes last week's 32-yarder.

Simmons says a variety of reasons played into his decision to move Anderson and put guys like cornerback DJ Ivey and safety PJ Jules at gunner. There's the makeup of the active list on game day, but also that Simmons trained him there when he first broke into the league.

"He's a tough matchup inside," Simmons says. "And sometimes when you're playing gunner, and you're punting away from him, the ball is further away from him … When he's playing right gunner and we punt it left, he had to run across the field. Not always a great thing.

"When you're playing PP, you're right in front of the ball, so he's always going to be around the ball. I always want Tycen to go to the ball."

Anderson likes that, of course. But it's been an adjustment. More thinking than at gunner, and now when he gets down there, he sees the gunners are there first and must play off their fits.

"I'm starting to think less and just play football," he says.

Anderson says he talked about the move with Simmons, and he's one of these guys who is all in when he's convinced it's the best for the team. That was his mindset at Toledo, where he became an icon as a do-it all defender and captain as an All-MAC player who also happened to play gunner.

Anderson approaches his job a lot like his dad back in Toledo. He's a self-employed carpenter whose nickname is 'Dig.' His motto is 'Dig a do it.' He can do it all, they say.

"I'm trying to be the best version of me for the team in whatever role," Anderson says. "To be one of the best special teams players in the league and make game- changing plays. Since high school, I've always embraced whatever role. I'm just trying to be the best Tycen in any world that's given to me."

Mims is built like a sleek punt returner, and Simmons notes if you take away his muff this season, his shortest return is 12 yards. They must limit his space and the way the ball flies at Mile High, that's a plus for Mims.

From the PP spot, Anderson isn't immersed in study of the Denver left guard. "He's probably looking at me more than I'm looking at him," Anderson says. He's watching Mims. But not as an individual edit. "That would be just a highlight reel."

He's clicking the 2025 Denver special teams link for that.

"You watch him how he tries to set up blocks and set up returns, so you do watch that through the Denver tape," Anderson says.

Simmons says they'll watch plenty of that tape from last December's overtime win over the Broncos at Paycor Stadium. "You study the returner," he says, but there's not much to see from that one. In fact, nothing.

The Bengals punted once. Not until the first series of overtime. And when they did, Ryan Rehkow sailed a 47-yard beauty to the right sideline that forced Mims to call a fair catch at his 10 with Ivey in his face as Anderson, the gunner, shot past him to make sure it didn't roll into the end zone.

"We didn't control him," Simmons says. "Our offense controlled him."

This is how Anderson says they must control Mims Monday: "Get in his face early and often. We can't give him space. All ten of us have to tackle him … As long as you're playing fast and physical, everything else should take care of itself."

Anderson clicks through the iPad. He also has links of the special teamers around the league that he likes to watch. Decade-long vets such as Washington's Jeremy Reaves and Pittsburgh's Miles Killebrew. He's still got the eye of a gunner when it comes to watching tape of foes.

"I like to see how they plan. Watching the tape of them playing a good gunner the week before, a few weeks before," Anderson says. "Did they vice (double team) him? Single him? Try to get a feel for how they would play me."

The accolades on teams are few and far between. They mostly come from those foes.

"I got triple-teamed against the Cowboys last year at gunner," Anderson says. "I got double-teamed last week on kickoffs. I guess those are the best compliments."

But on Monday, Anderson wants no compliments. Just a few more stops that the guys around the league can put on their iPads.