They will find out Sunday whether that makes an impact when the Bengals (2-2) host the Detroit Lions (3-1) at Paycor Stadium – as 10.5-point underdogs.
Captain and center Ted Karras said he thought the energy was high this week in practices and that the Bengals are dedicated to carrying that intensity into gameday. They’ve been outscored 76-13 the past two games and are looking to get back on track at home in Jake Browning’s first start at home since 2023.
“No one is hanging their heads,” Karras said. “We are getting it from all angles, and we hear you (fans). That is what it is, and we deserve that. But you can’t break my spirit, you can’t break my team’s spirit and we’re going to be ready for a football game Sunday at 4 p.m.”
Here are three things to know going into the game:
1. When the Bengals are on offense…
After struggling with turnovers in Week 2 and 3, the Bengals didn’t have any in the loss to Denver on Monday night but now they are seeking to show more discipline in avoiding pre-snap penalties.
Penalties sent them into a downward spiral in the first half and they never recovered. Through four games now, the Bengals rank in the bottom three in points scored (15.3 per game), net offense (205.3 yards per game) and net defense (397.8 yards allowed per game).
Cincinnati just needs to find a way to get points in Week 5. Karras said that will require the Bengals to “convert third downs, eliminate pre-snap penalties, play ahead of the sticks and punch it in in the redzone.”
The Bengals did better keeping pressure off Browning at Denver but face another good defensive front from the Lions, who rank third with 14 sacks. Defensive ends Aidan Hutchinson (4.0) and Al-Quadin Muhammad (3.5) lead that charge. They are led in the interior by former Bengals nose tackle D.J. Reader, whom Karras said is still playing at the same high level he did in Cincinnati from 2020 through 2023. Reader continues to wreck the running game for opposing offenses.
On the back end, Detroit is hurting from the loss of cornerback D.J. Reed, who is one of the best in the game but went on injured reserve this week. Wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase said he looks forward to a chance to match up one-on-one against a man defense.
“They are good up front,” Bengals offensive coordinator Dan Pitcher said. “Hutchinson is a premier edge player in this league. We know DJ well. Ton of respect for DJ and his game. Good linebacker challenging play style. They want to challenge you in the secondary. They want to play man coverage. They are going to grab you. They are going to confront you at the line of scrimmage. They are going to make you do it the hard way and win the physical battles down in and down out. … We’ll have to have a plan that accounts for that. It will be a good opportunity for our players to respond.”
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
2. When the Bengals are on defense...
After giving up more than 500 yards at Denver and 48 points at Minnesota, Cincinnati really has a chance to change the narrative with a better performance against the league’s top-scoring offense.
Quarterback Jared Goff leads the 10th-ranked passing offense (226.0 yards per game) on a team averaging 34.3 points per game, and the sixth-best running game adds to that with 139.0 rushing yards per game. Goff has 929 yards passing and nine touchdowns but just two interceptions while completing 73.8 percent of his passes. He’s helped by a dynamic arsenal of weapons in receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams and tight end Sam LaPorta.
Jahmyr Gibbs (271 yards, four touchdowns) and Mount Healthy High School product David Montgomery (245 yards, three touchdowns) will cause problems for the Bengals’ run defense, which started the season strong but allows 135.8 rushing yards per game.
Getting turnovers will be the key if the Bengals are going to have any chance at a third win. The Lions have scored 14 touchdowns on 18 trips in the redzone.
“They’re a big, strong power run game,” Bengals defensive coordinator Al Golden said. “They have a very good offensive line, two dynamic backs, tight ends that can block at the point, and unselfish wide receivers that will block. So, from there, everything revolves around that. From there they have the play-action game, which they’re very good at. And then they have the guys that could take the top off the defense and Jameson (Williams) and guys that can make you pay with (Amon-Ra) St. Brown and some of the other guys, (Sam) LaPorta and those guys underneath. So I think they’re a challenge at all three levels. And the quarterback’s playing well for them.”
3. Injuries of note
Taylor said tight end Noah Fant will be good to go after clearing concussion protocols and returning to full participation in practice Thursday, but punt/kick returner Charlie Jones did not practice Friday and is questionable after suffering an Achilles injury Monday night at Denver. Defensive end Shemar Stewart remains out with an ankle injury but could be back next week, Taylor said.
Backup center Matt Lee showed up on the injury report with a knee injury Thursday and was limited.
Detroit has a slew of injuries on top of losing Reed. Butler High School grad and Lions left tackle Taylor Decker (shoulder) and safety Kerby Joseph (knee) did not practice the first two days of the week, and defensive tackle Alim McNeil (knee) was considered 50-50 to play for the first time since his December ACL injury, a much-anticipated return.
Reserve linebacker Zach Cunningham (hamstring) and running back Sione Vaki also did not practice Wednesday or Thursday, and cornerback Khalil Dorsey was back to full participation coming off a concussion Thursday.
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