The 119 snaps Bengals cornerback Josh "Fig," Newton has played in the last two games are the most he's gone back-to-back since the heady days of his rookie year in 2024, and look for more of the same in Sunday night's game against the Steelers (8:20-Cincinnati's Channel 5) at Paycor Stadium.
"Two words," said Newton, who has no trouble finding them as one of the more voluble Bengals. "Step up. A lot at stake. An AFC North game at home for No. 1 in the division, if I'm not mistaken. It's going to be a war."
Newton isn't mistaken, but he's showing plenty were when they discarded him to the scrap heap after he wasn't active for the first three games of the season. The last time Newton didn't play is against these Steelers back on Sept. 27, and since then he's not so quietly played his way back into the top three with starting cornerbacks Dax Hill and DJ Turner II.
"I just think Chuck did a great job with him, just bringing him along to the point where, okay, he's ready to do it," said defensive coordinator Al Golden this week of his cornerbacks coach Chuck Burks.
"I thought he played really hard. There are some plays that he would like to have back, but overall he just really, really responded well. I thought he held up well in the run game, and wasn't afraid to mix it up and throw it around in there against a really good rushing attack. I think he should be excited. not satisfied, but excited about his starting point, and we should see some great growth from him this week."
Slot cornerback Jalen Davis hurt his hamstring that day in Pittsburgh, and as the coaches responded to his absence in a variety of ways, Newton kept showing up. He sums up his return to relevance in the slot pretty simply.
"Just being able to play fast and play in a specific spot, and operate at a high level," Newton said after Thursday's practice. "Talking to the guys around me. Talking to the backers, the DBs, the safeties. Making sure we're all on the same page."
Newton topped off his return last week in Madrid when Pro Football Focus graded him their second-highest Bengals defensive player behind only the monstrous play of defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence. His 56 snaps, many in the slot, allowed the Bengals to use Hill back on the outside more, and drew a smile from All-Pro wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase.
Chase and Newton talk "Lunchables," on the sidelines when either make a play. Chase credits Newton with the term. They also talk many other things. Chase figures he talks to Newton more than anybody else on that side of the ball.
"When you're hungry, you want to eat lunch, right?" Chase asked Thursday.
And Newton has always been one of the hungriest Bengals since he arrived in the fifth round from his hardscrabble college career that started in his native Louisiana at tiny Louisiana-Monroe and ended in the college football playoffs with Texas Christian.
"The biggest thing for Fig is just being confident," Chase said. "He was (inactive) …when Fig is at practice, he practices hard against us. When he goes against the ones, I like it. I love it. I always tell him to just keep going. And the more he works harder in practice, it will relate to the game."
His energy is one of the biggest reasons he's still around. Bengals head coach Zac Taylor values the trait and Golden likes how he knows the defense and is able to channel that energy into communication.
"He's got great energy, smart player, and he's vocal. He's a good communicator," Golden said.
Newton doesn't mind talking.
"He comes with the same energy every day," Chase said. "I love Fig. I talk to him more than probably anybody on the defensive side. Just making sure he's mentally in it, as well as I am. But overall, he's a good, good dude.
"I'm saying he's pretty smart. He even comes to me and asks me questions."
Burks has been a guy in Newton's corner. He knows all about the hunger and the collegiate climb.
"Fig earned it," Burks said of his last six weeks. "I trust him."
He'll also mix it up in the slot physically, and after Steelers running back Jaylen Warren and 300-pound tight end Darnell Washington killed them on a string of broken tackles in Pittsburgh last time, Newton knows he's in play.
"(Playing cornerback) helps you get better at (tackling) because you're so in the mix. I love it," Newton said. "We've got to tackle 30 (Warren). He's the bellcow of the offense. Everything goes through him. Everybody follows."
As for tackling Washington, Newton gives you one of those smiles and one-liners his teammates love:
"Low. You've got to tackle him low. No other way but low."
Slants and Screens
Ja'Marr Chases loves night games and not because of the attention. He likes to sleep in, spend half the day with his family and then head out to an environment that reminds him of "high school football … it feels like Friday night football." …
According to Pro Football Reference, it feels like another 100-yard game. Chase averages 103 yards in his late games and it will be recalled under the lights at Paycor last season against the Steelers the Bengals won a game where Chase set the Bengals' record with 16 catches …
But Chase isn't talking very much about numbers. As a young player, everybody was asking him what exactly was on that piece of paper with his goals that he put on his mirror. No more. He says he had no idea he had 142 yards at the half last week until somebody told him in the locker room.
"I just want to be more on the team side of things instead of personal accolades," Chase said in his weekly media get together. "I'm not saying it's a distraction for me or stopping us from where we want to go. But I think me worried about it, or me thinking about it, or having it on the mirror every day and seeing it, I just think it's something that can take a toll on the mind." …
The Bengals activated Jalen Davis (hamstring), wide receiver Andrei Iosivas (thumb), and rookie offensive lineman Brian Parker II (knee) from injured reserve, and they now have up to a 21-day window to get back to the roster after Thursday's return to practice …
It's a tough week to get activated since Thursday was pretty much the one extended practice of the week in the wake of the trip to Madrid. But Iosivas felt fine after taking his first throws from quarterbacks after weeks of catching them from the training staff.
"There were some wobblers in there, so that was good for me, too," Iosivas joked of the rehab field. "The big thing is not to be thinking about (the pain) when you reach for the ball. And that's what I was doing today. I was able to go through the ball."
Iosivas caught the obligatory seed from Joe Burrow and, "I feel great." …
Center and captain Ted Karras is one of the leaders Zac Taylor consults before he crafts weeks like this one. After getting Monday and Tuesday off and a late walkthrough day on Wednesday, Karras said Thursday he's got it down pat.
"Zac is a master scheduler. He's very cognizant of how his team is feeling," Karras said. "If you have complaints about a Zac Taylor schedule, you may have never played football before. We have to keep up our end of the bargain with good practices and we had a great one today." …
Backup linebacker Jack Kiser, who has become a special teams regular since the Bengals claimed him on waivers a month ago from Jacksonville, knows exactly where his passport is.
Kiser got the call from the Bengals when he was in London with the Jaguars. He found himself back in Europe less than a month later with Cincinnati in Madrid.
"I didn't get to do as much as I did in London," said Kiser, who toured Winston Churchill's bunker and visited Stonehenge as he killed time to hear if he cleared waivers. "When we got to (Madrid) that Wednesday, they told us to stay awake and so I went for a long walk and saw the palace and the church near our hotel."
More than anything, Kiser is impressed with the Bengals 3-0 record since he's been here and where they've done it.
"Great venues," Kiser said. "Coming back from 13-0 in Baltimore, big AFC North game, I saw what this team was made of. I've been on the other side of The Jungle, so I know how it can get and that's how it was when we beat Tennessee. And it was a great environment in Spain playing at a soccer stadium." …
