Bengals DC Hopes Cam Taylor-Britt Can 'Turn the Page' After Benching vs. Steelers

The Cincinnati Bengals are hoping to see cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt bounce back after being benched for Thursday's Week 7 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

"I would love nothing more for him to respond and go on a great run here," defensive coordinator Al Golden said Friday (h/t ESPN's Ben Baby).

Golden continued, "I enjoy being around Cam. I really want the best for him, and I really hope that he has an opportunity here to really turn the page and come out of this thing really, really good here over the next half of the season."

This is Golden's first season both with the Bengals and with Taylor-Britt, a 2022 second-round pick who made 38 starts in 39 appearances for Cincinnati over his first three seasons with the team.

After playing almost 94 percent of the Bengals' defensive snaps for the first two games of the 2025 season, Taylor-Britt was sidelined with a hamstring injury in Week 3.

He saw limited snaps in his next two appearances, then struggled with coverage in a Week 6 loss at the Green Bay Packers before head coach Zac Taylor named him a healthy scratch for Week 7.

DJ Turner, who took over Taylor-Britt's starting spot after Week 1, further cemented his role as the Bengals' top corner by stealing a ball from DJ Metcalf to force an interception on Aaron Rodgers during the win.

That was a role that would have previously been taken by Taylor-Britt, who was similarly assigned to cover Metcalf when the Bengals matched up with him and the Seattle Seahawks in 2023.

This time it was Turner and fourth-year corner Daxton Hill, who has started every game this season for the Bengals, getting the majority of snaps against Metcalf and the Steelers.

When asked after Thursday's win what led to Taylor-Britt's benching, Taylor answered, "We just have other DBs we're going to give a shot to."

Taylor spoke more about what Taylor-Britt could do to work his way back into the lineup when speaking to reporters on Friday.

"Just be consistent. Consistency, week to week, day to day, it's the biggest thing," Taylor said.

When asked if the "door was open" for Taylor-Britt to return, Taylor said, "Yes. Of course. He's talented, high-energy, wants to do right. Just keep working at it."

Taylor-Britt has a long week to work toward drawing back into the lineup before the Bengals return to action on Sunday, Oct. 26 against the visiting New York Jets.

Given that the Jets have fielded the least successful passing offense in the NFL throughout the team's 0-6 start to the season, next Sunday's home game could present a perfect bounce-back opportunity for Taylor-Britt if he is able to reclaim a spot in the rotation over the next nine days.