Although there seemed to be doubt outside, there never seemed to be a point where the Bengals weren't going to start Patrick at right guard Opening Day. He was with the first team for all but a day or two in the spring and training camp.
"I like his experience. I like how he has interacted with the other linemen," said head coach Zac Taylor before Wednesday's practice. "I've got a lot of confidence in him. He's shown me what I needed to see.
"I think Lucas could see this thing coming. I don't like to get into the depth chart. I don't even look at the depth chart. To me, this thing is always fluid up until the game. That doesn't mean we are making a change there. I've always been reluctant to ever say anything like this because I know how things can change at any position. You say it at one position, then you don't say it at another position. What does that say? So I'm always very careful about that."
That set off the external alarm bells. While they love Risner, he just started practicing last week. But impressively.
Dalton has come in and presented very well," Taylor said. "It's just integrating him into our schemes and getting him up to speed. He's put every bit of time and effort he can to get up on the verbiage. It all makes sense to him. I feel very comfortable if he had to go in there, he would help us."
Patrick, making his 65th NFL start and sixth on Opening Day with a fourth different team, has also been a big influence offering a steady hand to rookie left guard Dylan Fairchild as he makes his NFL debut Sunday.
"He's been awesome. Even today at practice, he gave me a tip about the footwork to get to my said destination," Fairchild said after practice. "All those guys over there have embraced me as the guy they get on. But it's in a good way. These guys have been great. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."
While Patrick stood at his locker Wednesday extolling the open house culture Brown and center Ted Karras have brought to the offensive line, Fairchild sat at his locker talking about how it has benefited him. Fairchild, a third-round guard from Georgia as the 81st pick, is staring at a matchup with the fifth pick, Browns rookie defensive tackle Mason Graham. And, at some point, you know four-time All-Pro sacker Myles Garrett is going to move from the edge to check him out.
But Fairchild has been well schooled. The week after he got drafted, Karras put him up in his pool house for about three days while he got jump-started on the playbook. After one rep in team drills this camp, Karras barked at him to get to the right spot.
"I've always given my center free reign to scream at me," Fairchild said. "Especially here, where these guys have been around and seen it all. You have to be able to take it from your own guys."
"I don't live there anymore, but my wife and I have been there and we've been to Orlando's. This is just a great room. My wife and I love it here."
As for a debut with such formidable assignments, Fairchild has been waiting for it.
"This is why I was put on this earth at this moment in time," Fairchild said. "To play football, be a good husband to my wife, and follow God to the best of my ability. It's life and death for me."
Patrick thinks he'll be just fine for a couple of reasons.
"Dylan is in a tough position as a rookie, but he never gets too high or too down on himself," Patrick said. "He's really level-headed. And he has to have physical talents to get drafted that early. We were talking before practice and he just wants to get better. And that's the right mentality to have."