Joe Burrow officially ended the Bengals' spring sessions Thursday morning when he breezed into the locker room about 30 minutes after practice on the Paycor Stadium turf and his extra running routine under the gaze of head strength and conditioning coach Joey Boese.

Burrow caught his breath as he walked by the locker of rookie linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr., but barely broke stride as he leaned in quickly to ask him what he thought of a no-look pass he had just uncorked on him.

"Just to rub it in a little bit. Just to put the lethal assassin touch on it. Put the Joe Shiesty on it right there. He let him out of the bag a little bit," Knight said. "It was a no-look pass. He has just checking in on me if I was given a no-look pass. Only the best can do that. That's why he's one of the best."

But here's the thing. Knight has looked good, look or no-look.

Lining up with Bengals' defensive dean Logan Wilson in the starting lineup since he arrived in the second round out of South Carolina, Knight has looked far from out of place. He's been storing up moments like that against Burrow and keeps impressing.

"He's done a hell of a job for a rookie with how much we've installed and covered," Wilson said. "I'm looking forward to playing next to him.

"He can do everything at a high level. Just a matter of putting it all together. He's fast, hits, big, shifty. All the things you want in a linebacker, he's got."

Head coach Zac Taylor isn't giving him the job yet. Not with free-agent vet Oren Burks bringing his two Super Bowl starts into the room, along with fourth-round pick Barrett Carter’s big school pedigree from Clemson. But he's also been impressed.

"Those guys are still competing for that. I do think he has worked really hard. As I come in the building, he's one of the first guys in the locker room every single day," Taylor said. "Very mature. He's ready to go, ready to compete."

Knight feels better than he did a month ago.

"I feel prepared," Knight said. "I guess I came into it not knowing what to expect. I'm coming into (training camp) extremely prepared and ready for the next step."

Knight couldn't make Wilson's celebrity softball game Wednesday night because his two children, two and almost one, weren't feeling well. "Dad duty," he called it. Wilson sees it.

"Very mature. A wife. Two kids,' Wilson said. "He's been through a hard time. It's cool to see him working the way he does."

Knight says he's spending the next five weeks with the wife picking out a place to live in Cincinnati and getting to know their new town.

"Maybe get a Zoo membership. Or the aquarium," Knight said.

He just became a member of a big group of NFL linebackers Burrow has challenged over the years.

"Eye manipulation at its finest," Knight said.

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August Heat

Taylor not only reiterated Thursday that he may play his starters more in the preseason, but he wouldn't rule playing them in more than one preseason game. He hasn't done that since his first season in 2019.

"That's definitely on the table. Having been through this 14 years now really it can change every training camp," Taylor said. "Certain games change depending on health and on decisions we want to make. I don't mind putting that out there in the world that we're considering playing these guys in two or three of the games, but that's always subject to change based on injuries."

Captains Wilson and Hill?

With Sam Hubbard retired and Vonn Bell and Germaine Pratt moving on, no Bengals defensive captain returns. Leaders in the clubhouse would have to be Wilson, the signal-caller, and tackle B.J. Hill, the most experienced player on the defense with 112 NFL games. Neither is campaigning for it.

"Keeping the main thing the main thing and be my true self. If I get a C, I get a C," Wilson said.

Hill: "I don't know. My job is to come out here and lead these guys no matter if I have a C on my chest. My main goal is to push these guys and lead them in the right direction. I've always been a leader, always led by example, and always led by my words."

Slants and Screens

Wilson's third annual game in Dayton benefits the Brooks Joshua Anderson Foundation dedicated to finding a cure for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), and it's becoming a dawn-of-summer Bengals tradition. Former Bengals running back Giovani Bernard, who hasn't played here since 2020 and has been retired almost as long, showed up with his wife and son.

"It's always good to see Gio come back here. He gave a lot of good (eight) years to Cincy," Wilson said …

Zac Taylor is always a good sport at these things and made a nice play at shortstop. But nothing like the prowess of his Nebraska soulmate Cam Taylor-Britt.

"I should have known. He threw for 1,000 yards, 1,500 yards his senior year (in high school)," Taylor said. "His overall athleticism, the play he makes as a DB, plays on the ball, the play he made at shortstop where he fielded it on the move. It was a bad throw to first, but we could all see the athleticism." …

Evan McPherson missed field goals from 51 and 54 yards at the end of practice, but hit his last one from 54 to take into the break …

Unsigned No. 1 pick Shemar Stewart wasn't at Thursday's practice, but apparently let Taylor be aware of it.

"He did. We've had good communication," Taylor said …