Bengals head coach Zac Taylor met the media before Tuesday's practice for the first time since they cut the roster to 53 players and said that wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase (knee) and Tee Higgins (heel) are limited this week.

But Taylor indicated they'll be ready for next week's prep for the Sept. 13 opener (1 p.m.-Cincinnati's FOX 19) against the Bucs at Paycor Stadium.

Taylor also said safety Bryan Cook is full go, and edge Shemar Stewart (knee) remains on the rehab field. He also expects cornerback Dax Hill to be ready next week despite not practicing most of camp. Hill is working back into individuals this week.

Taylor also said:

-Asked how his roster has upgraded over last year, Taylor said "the defensive line really jumped out." The Bengals opted to go heavy there with 11, and that included seventh-round tackle Landon Robinson.

"It's waves there.  I think that's critical," Taylor said. "As a play-caller … the first thing I look at is who we're facing up front. First and foremost. I feel like if that's a deep group that continues to come at you, that makes it challenging to see sometimes beyond the back seven. I feel like we've got that group right now."

-Taylor said the swing tackle job is still up in the air, and it looks like the man they picked up on waivers Monday, former Eagles tackle Myles Hinton, a 2025 sixth-rounder is now in a mix with Javon Foster and Jalen Rivers with Foster and Rivers having the edge because of familiarity with the scheme.

But Taylor also said he'll have a competition every week if that's how long it takes for someone to win the job.

-The Bengals like Hinton's pedigree. The son of Chris Hinton, a seven-time Pro Bowl tackle and guard for the Colts of the 1980s and 1990s, Myles' older brother Christopher played two seasons on the Chargers defensive line.

The Bengals also like his background at Michigan, where he played with a bunch of current Bengals: D-tackle Kris Jenkins Jr., long-snapper William Wagner and cornerback DJ Turner II.

"All the boys are here. Which helps out a lot," said Hinton, who missed the call from his agent and found out he was coming to Cincinnati when his dad texted "BENGALS!"

Myles Hinton didn't play last season after getting hurt in training camp, but he felt he was ready to go after recovering in a short time and then found himself against a ton of tackles in Philly's camp this summer.

"I was telling the guys here. It was like seven or eight (tackles). I felt I got better as camp went on," said Hinton, who played 14 snaps against the Bengals last Friday night. "I'm working on staying square longer in pass pro, better use of my hands, landing punches more. I feel I can get to my spot well, it's just a matter of once I get to the spot excelling at the point of attack.

-After his sizzling preseason, a disappointed Josh Johnson returned to the practice squad Tuesday. He was so good, Taylor said, better than many of the quarterbacks out there, that he was surprised he didn't land on a roster.

"I like the staff. I like everything we're doing," Johnson said. "This is what was available. This was the best opportunity."

-The Bengals still have five tight ends. Tanner Hudson, cut to make room for Hinton, joined the practice squad Tuesday. Now he and the seventh-rounder who did make it, Jack Endries, are lockering next to each other.

"We drafted Jack because of his pass-game value," Taylor said. "He made the team because of what he's done in the run game. I'm not saying he's there yet. He's got a long way to go. But I know over time what we're going to get from Jack in the pass game. It's on tape.

"What you don't know when you get a tight end is how they'll fare in the run game and protections, and I saw the willingness, toughness and scrappiness to put his face in there."

-The Bengals have two new receivers in the back of the room replacing returner Charlie Jones and Mitch Tinsley. CFL-import Dohnte Meyers played his way on in the preseason, and what returner Ke’Shawn Williams did in his three games as a Bengal last year helped him. And maybe one not as a Bengal.

"I think that goes back to last season, the faith. I saw him do it live in games. So he did a great job there," Taylor said of a season that included a career-high 91 kick-return yards VS. the Bengals for the Steelers. "He made some plays as a receiver this training camp, and I just think he is a valuable weapon to have, however it shakes out, whatever his role ends up being for us on game day. He earned the opportunity, so it was good to keep him out there. "