CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Andrei Iosivas hauled in Joe Burrow’s lengthy pass in between two defenders on the far side of the bubble practice facility late Thursday morning.
It was a completion that meant a great deal to the 25-year-old.
Cornerback Dax Hill converged on Iosivas after the reception, and while both were in a backpedal, he forced Iosivas to the ground with his left hand. Iosivas flipped over the turf, stood up and victoriously gave an audible roar heard by everyone in the facility. He then high-fived Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase and hurriedly returned to the offense.
More than an hour later, the man nicknamed "Yoshi" by teammates and fans couldn’t help but offer a wide grin as he discussed the competitive play between teammates.
“Deep balls are always nice,” he said. “A nice little 40-yard gain when they’re talking smack on a third-down period. It’s always nice.”
WATCH: Hear what the third-year receiver is learning from star teammates Tee Higgins and Ja'Marr Chase
A day after making a highlight one-handed catch at Kettering Health Practice Fields, Iosivas continues to draw the attention of teammates and coaches during this training camp.
Bengals coach Zac Taylor spoke about Iosivas's impressive ability to make an impact on one-on-one matchups.
“Really consistent,” Taylor said. “Really come far on the 50-50 type catches where he’s being restricted and comes down with it.”
Taylor said Iosivas will take advantage of certain situations because of the impact of star receivers Chase and Higgins.
"He's going to get those matchups," Taylor said of Iosivas. "And when they're devoting help over the top of our other two guys and Yoshi and (tight end) Mike (Gesecki) have those one-on-ones, a lot of times they're going to be in situations where it's back shoulder throws. It's not always going to be over the top. And their awareness has really grown."
The 2023 sixth-round draft pick from Princeton University had career highs in receptions (36), receiving yards (479) and receiving touchdowns (six) in 2024 — and he worked plenty on his craft this offseason.
“Catching a million balls at a million miles per hour,” Iosivas said. “I think catching is a lot of understanding space. And just trusting yourself. And once you trust yourself, then you will be fine.”
The Bengals players trust Iosivas as a leader, too. He enjoys giving the younger players a number of tips on technique and leverage.
“They ask me what they can do better,” Iosivas said. “Because I feel like I study the game and I really love the game and respect it, so I’m always looking at everybody with what they’re doing and seeing if I have any pointers to give.”
In turn, Iosivas is feeding off the team’s energy during training camp.
“It’s been the most competitive camp since I’ve been here,” Iosivas said. “Guys are talking. It’s kind of a cool vibe. Everyone is talking smack. But then everyone is positive.”
While the Bengals invested a reported $276 million this offseason into Chase and Higgins, Iosivas certainly hopes to become the next Bengals star receiver.
“Ja’Marr and Tee are the two best in the world,” Iosivas said. “Obviously, Ja’Marr being the triple crown winner, you can learn a lot from him. A lot of the stuff I learned about YAC (yards after catch) this offseason was from him. And Tee — me and him being similar stature and size — you see someone like that drop his hips really, really fast, you’re like, ‘OK, maybe I can do that, too.’ So seeing someone like that really helped me to my game onto the next level.”
The Bengals are off Friday and return to training camp Saturday night inside Paycor Stadium. They'll open the preseason at reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Aug. 7 (7:30 p.m. kickoff).
