Bengals WR Opens Up on Online Abuse Suffered, Overcoming It

There is no doubt that social media can connect fans to players better than ever before, but that’s not always for the best, as Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Andrei Iosivas has now opened up about the abuse he suffered online last season.

“I feel like last year I was in my head a little bit,” Iosivas said, per ESPN. “I had those drops in those games and people were telling me to kill myself and all that kind of stuff. I never had that kind of stuff happen to me before. So it got in my head a little bit when people — you know, when your DMs [direct messages] are flooded with people telling you to kill yourself.”

Iosivas would play his college football at Princeton before becoming a sixth-round pick the Bengals made back in 2023. He’s also generally regarded as one of the best personalities on the team, but he became emotional while discussing the online abuse.

“It makes me angry, honestly,” Iosivas said. After that, he had to step away and collect himself.

2025 was a difficult season for Iosivas from a statistical standpoint. His receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns all took a dip. Worse, he had the lead on the Bengals in drops, with five. That’s what much of the online abuse would stem from as fans became frustrated with the overall course of the season.

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Andrei Iosivas Has Been an Unsung Strength for the Cincinnati Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals have an offense full of stars, particularly in the passing game. Joe Burrow is among the best quarterbacks in the NFL, and he’s throwing to some of the best wide receivers, in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. So, it’s easy for a player like Andrei Iosivas to go under the radar.

Still, in 2025, Iosivas was third among Bengals receivers in yards. That was the second season in a row he was third among the wide receivers in yards. In both years, he was fourth among all players in receiving yards.

In 2025, Iosivas had 33 receptions for 435 yards, or 13.2 yards per reception. He also had 2 receiving touchdowns. That, in a down season, is a very real production that the Bengals would miss.

That doesn’t mean that the Bengals are never looking for the next option at wide receiver. Just this season, the Bengals took Colbie Young out of Georgia.

“I just do me and whatever happens, [happens],” Iosivas said. “I feel like I’ve been fighting for that spot for three years, so I don’t really care.”

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Bengals Wide Receiver Rumored to be at Risk of Being Cut

Following the NFL Draft, Bengals Wire writer Chris Roling shared a list of potential wide receivers who could be cut this year. That didn’t include Andrei Iosivas, but it did include Kendric Pryor.

“As expected, the Bengals attacked wideout, especially the third spot that has underwhelmed for the better part of a year. It’s unlikely to put Andrei Iosivas in actual roster danger, but his role in the rotation could be up for grabs,” Roling wrote.

Rookie draft pick Colbie Young is that talented. And it’s going to put pressure on budding in-house favorites on the tail end of the depth chart, like Mitch Tinsley and Kendric Pryor, who aren’t as good as Charlie Jones on special teams.”

For now, it’s all speculation. However, the Bengals do have a crowded wide receiver room that everyone needs to battle in.

Dan Morrison After graduating from UMass in 2019, Dan Morrison quickly began a career in sports journalism and digital media. That has seen him work both as a contributing writer at several publications, as well as spending time on the National News Desk at On3. During that time, he has spent the majority of his time covering football, both at the college and NFL levels. Currently residing in Central Florida, his focus with Heavy is on the NFL. More about Dan Morrison