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Bengals Film Breakdown: Andrei Iosivas' Growth, Development and Where He Can Improve

Cincinnati added Iosivas in the sixth-round (206th overall) in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Mike Santagata

Bengals Film Breakdown: Andrei Iosivas' Growth, Development and Where He Can Improve
Bengals Film Breakdown: Andrei Iosivas' Growth, Development and Where He Can Improve /
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Andrei Iosivas was arguably the biggest surprise of the Bengals preseason. 

The Princeton alum was seen as a great athlete, but a raw talent going into the 2023 NFL Draft. 

His size and athleticism generally pegged him as an outside wide receiver and the competition level and rawness to his game made analysts see him as more of a dart throw than anything else. By taking Iosivas, the Bengals bet on his tools and traits more than his technical ability. That dart throw already seems to have hit the board and quicker than most expected. 

Just how far along has Iosivas developed? Let’s dive into the film to find out.

Athleticism

Iosivas’s athleticism has translated to the field. He uses his speed to threaten defensive backs down the field and cause them to open their hips, allowing him to create easy separation at the break. Take this play for example:

As a receiver, speed is the best weapon you can have. The speed to force a defensive back to open up their hips to run with you is coveted around the NFL. Every route a receiver run is a go route until it’s not. On this out route, Iosivas sells the vertical portion which forces the defensive back to open up and run. 

Once that defensive back opens up, Iosivas has won the rep. Even though the break takes him about five steps, it doesn't matter. He creates separation and is open on the play. The defensive back is out of position and going in the wrong direction, giving Iosivas plenty of time to win on the break. Ultimately, he isn't targeted on this play but it’s an example of how he can use one of the most important tools any wide receiver can have.

Body Control

Everyone knew that Iosivas was an exceptional athlete because that was measured at the combine. What we didn't know is that he also has high end body control. 

This is a trait that can’t really be taught and is highly sought after by this Bengals coaching staff. Body control is being able to independently control your limbs and contort your body to make catches. Iosivas has that ability:

Iosivas catches the ball and then works his lower half independently of his upper half to make sure he gets both feet in bounds. The contortion of the upper body to turn and shield the ball from the defender is also another example of his exemplary body control. This body control and athleticism make him a threat on go balls because it allows him to either work over the top with his speed or to the back shoulder with his body control. 

These two natural abilities are what Iosivas possesses in spades. However you may have noticed that neither of these are technical aspects to playing football. 

Let’s dive into his technique: 

Release

Releasing off of the line of scrimmage is one of the most important areas of a receiver’s game. A good release will set a receiver up for proper timing and spacing on a concept and can even put them in an advantageous position to create separation. Sometimes this is conflated with route running, but it’s really two separate areas of the game.

Iosivas didn't face much press or deal with corner’s trying to jam him at the line in college because he played at a lower level of competition. It showed on the field as his release was a bit of a mixed bag in the preseason. Let’s look at some of the good things he did with his release.

Iosivas uses a jab step on this release so that he can create more room for his outside release go route. This sets himself up nicely because it keeps him out of the no tread zone (about five yards from the sideline), making the throw and catch easier. I also like the subtle usage of his inside arm to shrug and get the corner back’s hand off of his shoulder.

On this play, Iosivas is using a split release which looks similar to the jab but serves a different purpose. The split release puts the corner on their heels and allows the receiver to release to the inside or the outside. Iosivas releases to the inside here and the corner is unable to get a good jam on him. The release inside for an out breaking route is useful because it gives the receiver more room to the outside if they can break the corner’s leverage at the break point. Here he does that as well, but it’s set up well because he gets a great release off of the line of scrimmage.

Iosivas developed some ability to release off of the line, which is encouraging. Even though he does not have extremely high end short area quickness, he can effectively use multiple releases. From there he has shown good strength and speed to carry over those wins to the break point and catch point. 

He still has plenty to improve on from a release standpoint. 

The corner on this play uses a more aggressive two-hand jam and Iosivas just eats it. He needs to be able to avoid this punch or find a way around it because it took him out of the play. The defense is in Tampa 2, which is a coverage the Bengals see often. 

Tampa 2 allows the corner to get more physical and aggressive with their jam because they have help over the top and are responsible for the flats. This is a common look that Bengals receivers get in regular and postseason games, but Iosivas didn't look prepared on this rep for what the corner would do.

Trevor Siemian missing Iosivas for a touchdown is inexcusable, but Iosivas could have helped Siemian out as well. He gets rerouted to the sideline and is nearly out of bounds by the time he gets beyond the jam. If he gets through that quicker and stays further away from the sideline, then Siemian would have an easier time finding him for the touchdown. As it stands, it’s not his fault that this play didn't end in a touchdown, but he could have done more with his release.

Another example of an aggressive jam getting the better of him. He gets slowed down and forced to the sideline here. He needs to work on keeping his chest clean and becoming harder to aggressively jam at the line of scrimmage.

Even though he looks further along than some thought he would be with his release package, there is still quite a bit of work to do. 

Now let’s look at his route running and ability to get out of breaks.

Route Running

Iosivas’s route running was commonly seen as something that needed work during the pre-draft process. Much like his release, it appears that he is further along than analysts anticipated, but there is still room for improvement.

Iosivas does a great job on this play of using his physicality to win leverage at the break point. He needs to get inside of this defensive back so he makes sure to push him (but not extend his arm fully) so that he can create some room and win over the middle. This is a great example of a play that should translate from the pre season to the regular season.

Mixed bag on this play as this is a great release and he shows a nice swat move to get the corner’s hands off of him which sets him up for success. However he’s a tad slow getting out of this break and rounds the out route a little bit too much. If he can sink more and explode out of the break, then he would have even more separation. He did enough to win on this rep but a bad ball ends up incomplete.

Another good example of Iosivas winning at the break point here as he gets the corner on his heels before breaking this suddenly to the inside. He runs it fairly flat down the line and has an easy catch away from the defender.

He was not consistent with that slant though as here he is in good position but then drifts away from the quarterback allowing the defender back into the play. If he runs this flatter down the line then he has an easier catch.

As it stands he has shown the ability to win at the break point although he may always be slightly limited at the break because he’s a long legged wide receiver which limits his short area quickness. Still he should be able to grow and win leverage at the break.

Catching

Iosivas has surprisingly small hands for his size. Because of that, the team has emphasized that he needs to become comfortable catching the ball away from his frame. He showed flashes of great hand strength and ability to catch the ball outside of his frame this preseason.

These flashes are really what the team wants to see. It shows that he has the ability to catch the ball outside of his frame, despite the hand size. He wasn't consistent and at times allowed the ball to come into his body, but as he grows more confident in his hands, he should be able to grow in this area to become a better receiver. Again, it’s another area that he appears to be further along than analysts anticipated even if it still needs more improvement.

All in all, Iosivas oozes natural ability as a receiver. His athleticism and body control are top notch and together make for a deadly combination. While he’s not yet fully developed as a receiver, he’s further along than many expected him to be at this stage in his career. He's not polished in multiple areas, including his release, route running and ability to catch the ball. If he was, then he would not have so much potential. If he can continue to grow in the technical area of the game, then he can make an impact on the Bengals offense going forward.

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Mike Santagata
MIKE SANTAGATA

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