Pittsburgh recovered the loose ball and held on for a 24-16 win, and Boyd admitted the fumble bothered him for most of the next week.
CINCINNATI BENGALS NEWS NOW: Like our Facebook page to join the conversation
“A lot of guys had my back with that and didn’t let it keep me down,” he said. “I’m a young guy, a rookie, and they knew that weighed on me a lot, especially playing against my hometown team and going into the last scoring drive of the game. I’m just happy to be around these type of people in this locker room. This whole organization helped me get over that. So it didn’t really swell up on me as much.”
Working as the third receiver and fourth option in the passing game behind A.J. Green, Brandon LaFell and Tyler Eifert, Boyd continued to make modest contributions to the offense, averaging 2.7 catches for 23.6 yards over the next seven games.
But since Green suffered a hamstring injury two plays into the Nov. 20 game against Buffalo, Boyd has emerged as Dalton’s No. 1 target.
RELATED: Bengals-Steelers series notes
He has 21 catches for 231 yards over the last four games, including his first career touchdown in the Bills game after Green went down.
“I think he’s playing faster because he has a better feel for the game and of what we’re asking him to do,” Dalton said. “It comes back to the whole confidence thing, knowing he’s going to be in the right spot. It’s knowing that when he gets there, the ball will be on time. That’s the biggest thing. He’s gotten a lot more comfortable with what we’re doing.”
Boyd ranks fourth with 48 receptions and fifth among rookie receivers with 526 yards.
Follow Jay Morrison on Twitter
“I definitely feel a lot more confident in my game,” he said. “It feels like my last year of college, where I’m so confident that guys can’t stick with me, can’t guard me. I knew I had to push myself even further to become the player the coaches and everybody in the organization have wanted me to become. I just felt like I had to speed up a tick with A.J. going down. When he was still playing, I was able to take regular steps. Now it’s like I have to speed walk a little bit to be a guy that they can lean on on third downs.”
When it comes to third down, no rookie has been better, as Boyd’s 21 receptions are seven more than the next member of the 2016 class, the Giants’ Sterling Shepard.
RELATED: Dec. 18 in Bengals history
“It’s just about feel,” Boyd said of his third-down success. “(Wide receivers coach James Urban) always tells me to just go out there and be me, be a football player. And (offensive coordinator Ken Zampese) tells me to run a certain, particular route. So I do a little bit of both.
“I want to run the route, but I want to do it with my flavor,” he added. “I want to try to get a guy leaning one way because I’ve got a lot of choice routes and option routes and snag routes, routes that I can double move a lot and wiggle. That helps me a lot to get to the sticks and get open and be available for my quarterback.”
READ MORE: Green limited second day in a row, decreasing likelihood of playing vs. Steelers
And no one is more eager for another shot at the AFC North Division-leading Steelers than Boyd after the way the last game ended.
“I’m so ready. I can’t wait,” he said. “It doesn’t matter who we play, I just want to win. But a Steelers win, to me, is going to be mean a lot.”
Next game
Pittsburgh Steelers (8-5) at Cincinnati Bengals (5-7-1)
When: 1 p.m. Sunday
TV: Ch. 7, 12
Radio: 700-AM, 1530-AM, 102.7-FM, 104.7-FM
About the Author