Locked On Bengals - Daily Podcast On The Cincinnati Bengals - Bengals Offense Seeks REDEMPTION Against Jaguars | Will Joe Burrow Bounce Back?
Episode Date: September 11, 2025Can the Cincinnati Bengals bounce back against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 2? Joe Burrow and the offense need to wake up after a lackluster season opener.Jake Liscow and James Rapien break down k...ey matchups, including Trevor Lawrence's potent passing attack versus the Bengals' secondary, where Cam Taylor-Britt's performance is under a microscope as he faces a tough challenge from Jacksonville's receivers. And the turnover battle looms as large as ever as Zac Taylor looks for his first Bengals Week 2 win in the home opener.Join the Locked On Bengals Insider Community! https://joinsubtext.com/lockedonbengalsFind and follow Locked On Bengals on your favorite podcast platforms:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/locked-on-bengals-daily-podcast-on-the-cincinnati-bengals/id1159723162Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7AObc0lh0WmQl5fJVgtajsGoogle Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vbG9ja2Vkb25iZW5nYWxz?sa=X&ved=0CAYQrrcFahcKEwio_sXtj8nuAhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQAgStitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/locked-on-bengalsSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!5-Hour ENERGYTee up that trip! Enter for a chance to win a dream golf trip for two to any golf tournament* in the USA. Visit https://5HEWIN.com for full rules and entry. No purchase necessary. Excludes the Master’s tournament. Ends October 31, 2025.DoorDashWith DoorDash Streaks, you save every Saturday you order — stack it up all season and you could save up to $250. Order this Saturday. Keep the streak alive. Fuel your gameday — only with DoorDash. Terms apply. Promo period through 11/18.Monarch MoneyTake control of your finances with Monarch Money. Use code LOCKEDONNFL at monarchmoney.com/lockedonnfl for 50% off your first year.UpsideDon’t let this offer drive on by, download the free Upside app now using my limited time promo code TOUCHDOWN for a limited time 25 cent per gallon bonus! Offers vary by user and location, Go to upside.com for terms and conditions.Click Here to download the app: https://getupside.onelink.me/zlLr?af_xp=custom&pid=barrington&c=barrington_lockedon25&deep_link_value=promo&deep_link_sub1=lockedon25&af_dp=upsideapp%3A%2F%2FYahoo FantasyPresented by YahooFantasy #YahooPartner. Draft now at https://yahoofantasy.com/lockedonnfl.PrizePicksDownload the PrizePicks app today and use code LOCKEDONNFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.FanDuelRight now, new customers can bet just FIVE dollars and if your bet wins—you’ll get THREE HUNDRED dollars in bonus bets to use across the app.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Transcript
Discussion (0)
The Cincinnati Bengals have a lot to prove in trying to get their first week to win into Zach Taylor era.
Let's break it down.
You are Locked on Bengals, your daily Cincinnati Bengals podcast.
Part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day.
What up, Bengals fans, and welcome to another episode of the Lockdown Bengals podcast,
part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day.
I'm Jake Liscoe, he's James Rapine, and we've been covering your Cincinnati Bengals here on
Lockdown Bengals since 2016, making it your best one-stop shop for daily updates on your
favorite team, the Cincinnati Bengals, everything going on with this team as we're looking
for them to get a win and get to 2-0 for the first time in the Zach Taylor era.
And, well, it's a stiffer test in week two than it was in week one in the Cleveland Browns.
And there are analysts I respect, James, who are still one.
way down on the Cincinnati Bengals defense, which just tells you that they still have a lot to
prove. We'll get into all of that and what we're expecting in this week two matchup in today's
episode brought to you by Mazda, like our players. We sweat every detail because when you make
every move count, pulling off the unexpected is only the beginning. Stay tuned later for highlights
in this week's moving the game forward. Mazda, move it, be moved. And James, let's start with the
offensive side of the ball. The offenses
to wake up. Obviously, we
have all seen this show before
from the Cincinnati Bengals, but what's
interesting to me is that when you look at
Joe Burroughs stats
in weeks one and week two,
you look at the AFC championship
year, the Super Bowl year,
he actually was worse in
week two than week one in those years.
You look at the last two years, by comparison,
got much, much better in week
two than week one. I expect
that to be the case again, this
week. I expect this to be a much more normal football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
But like Joe said, they have to go out there and do it. And it's not just a matter of saying
you think it will happen or believing it will happen. No, it's prove it time. I think prove it.
It's funny. Sometimes Jake and I discuss the background on YouTube. Sometimes we don't. And it lines up
really, really well with what we're going to be talking about because both units need to prove it.
They have plenty to prove. And it does start with this offense.
If this offense, let's just say they're somewhere in the middle from where they were in the first half of last week and the second half of last week.
I don't think that's good enough to win on Sunday.
I think the offense needs to be much, much better than it was in the second half.
And if they put together two halves of football like they did in the first half, well, they're probably going to have five or six possessions in the first half versus three.
That's the first thing.
The Browns were able to, and this kind of ties into the defense, but the Browns were able to eat up clock.
And that's AFC North Football, baby.
And so for this Bengals offense, especially early on, the great thing they did last week, they get off to a hot start.
They maintain the lead throughout the first half.
That gave the defense time to get through some of these growing pains.
Make no mistake, regardless of how they won in week one.
This team is going to be carried by their offense if they're good, or if they're a playoff team, or if they're a Super Bowl contender, or if they're going to win the division.
and so Joe, Jamar, T, Chase Brown, everybody needs to be better than they were last week.
Andre Yosebosch, Mike Kisicki, Noah Fian, all of them.
And there were good plays from those guys, some of those guys specifically last week.
But I don't think it's going to be enough against a Jags team that should be able to put some heat on Joe
and should score plenty of points on the other side.
It's somewhat similar to last.
week in some ways when you look at the offenses matchup with Jacksonville, they have a couple of
good quarters in Jordan Lewis and Tyson Campbell. Really good second level led by Ola Koon,
Devin Lloyd, really good linebackers there. One really good pass rusher in Josh Heinz Allen,
who was dominant in week one against Carolina Panthers. And again, we'll test Orlando Brown.
We'll test Amarius Mims, who did practice on Thursday as he showed up on Wednesday,
limited with an ankle injury. But Trayvon Walker with that power.
will be a challenge as well. And for the interior of the Bengals' offensive line that really struggled
in the second half in particular and had some welcome to the NFL moments for Dylan Fairchild,
Eric Arnestead is on that other side for Jacksonville. And while he's a little bit long in the truth
at this point in his NFL career, I feel like the Bengals have seen a lot of him throughout his career,
at least recently when he went to Indianapolis and all this thing. So Eric Arnestead still a bit
of a menace on the interior and one area that needs to be better throughout the game,
because I thought they started out fine.
And it's been pointed out that the Bengals couldn't get pressure in the first half.
Neither could the Browns in the first half of that football game in week one.
And now you get week two with Dalton Reisner.
Now you get a little bit of continuity there.
Hopefully they don't have to deal with more injuries to that unit,
but they need to finish the game much better on the offensive line.
You can't have those meltdowns in the second half.
half. And a big part of this, James, we spend a lot of time talking about past protection.
And I think that they'll get to a point where it will be operable in past protection.
And Joe Burrow will be dealing with the pressure better and the receivers will be uncovering
earlier and they'll have the answers to pressure and they'll figure that stuff out.
The run blocking needs to be way better.
I mean, we had some optimism early in that week one Brown's game in the run game.
But a lot of that is Chase Brown making a lot out of not a lot, a lot of a lot of
getting hit in the backfield and breaking tackles in the backfield to get yards,
getting down to hill quickly.
So how the run game looks different in week two than week one,
schematically, I think is a big question for me,
where you're going to have a different approach,
most likely for this game plan versus what they did against the Browns.
And can they figure anything out to make the run game just look a little bit more put
together in terms of execution of some of these blocks on the front?
Yeah, because if they do, they're going to get some explosive runs.
I think you saw the talent of Chase Brown.
I mentioned him a few minutes ago.
And when I did that in the back of my mind, I'm like, yeah,
Chase played pretty well, actually.
And he did a lot with what he had.
And so give him a little bit more because I'll tell you this,
there were a few times in camp when you were here and certainly throughout camp where I'm like,
man, 30?
That's a huge run.
That's 30 yards.
That's 40.
That's going.
And how nice would it be if they do get some of those explosive runs given the fact
that I would be stunned, Jake, if this offense wasn't more explosive this week,
if they didn't try downfield more, if they didn't push it more.
And I do think that they went into Cleveland with a certain mindset of how they needed to
attack the Browns. I think that's going to be a bit different against the Jaguars.
I did look up some stats. Joe's played, they beat Jacksonville three straight times.
Joe's played the Jags twice. And he's completing 73.5% of his passes,
648 yards on 50 completions and three touchdowns to one pick.
It doesn't matter because this is a different team.
I get it.
But he's been really good against the Jaguars.
He's 2 and 0 against them.
And I would expect to see the Joe that I saw throughout training camp and that we saw in preseason.
I think the Cleveland aspect of it makes it a little more challenging to judge this team overall.
And so to escape that place with a win,
You feel good about it.
You lick your wounds.
Really figuratively because health-wise, they're good, like you said.
And you should be able to hit the ground running.
I have really, really high expectations for this offense on Sunday.
I'm not sure if they're going to win, but I think this offense should be much better.
I think you should see a revived offense, something much better than what we saw in week one throughout the game.
Like I said, I'm expecting this to be a much more normal football game than week one,
where it was like really two halves and like there's the Browns on the road factor.
There's a Miles Garrett factor.
There's a week one factor.
There's all these factors that contributed it contributed to it being a bit of a weird game.
But I do want to finish with a couple thoughts on the offense defense matchup before we transition to the defensive side of the ball where like I said, the Bengals still have a lot to prove, I think, on that side of the ball.
We talked before week one about the Brown's offense, meaning we were holding the defense.
to a bit of a higher standard in week one.
So we'll get to that conversation here in a few minutes as well
after we wrap up on the offense in the next couple of minutes coming up next.
Today's show is brought to you by DoorDash.
DoorDash, well, it's almost the weekend.
It's time to look back and crowned this week's MVP.
And who delivered?
Well, it's powered by DoorDash.
And just like you can win every Saturday with DoorDash streaks,
saving more every time you order these players delivered when it mattered most.
Let's break it down. Let's start with Jordan Battle.
Obviously, Bengal safety, Jordan Battle delivered in a big way.
And the interception in the third quarter that gave the Bengals a chance to take the lead for good in Cleveland.
When the pressure was on, battle came through, no hesitation, no delay.
And if you've been watching this defense, you know they have a lot to prove.
Well, battle started to prove it.
And make sure that just like Battle delivered for the Bengals, DoorDash delivers your Saturdays with DoorDash Streaks.
You save every Saturday you order.
You stack up all season and you could save up to $250,
including $100 in DoorDash credits.
Order this Saturday.
Keep the streak alive.
Fuel your game bay only with DoorDash.
Terms apply.
We're also brought to you today here on Lockdown Bengals by Fandual.
The NFL season, we're here.
We're in week two at this point.
FanDuel is making sure you're ready for kickoff with a can't miss offer.
Right now, new customers can bet just $5.
And if your bet wins, you'll get $300.
$100 in bonus bets to use across the Fandul app.
So say you get in on the Bengals straight up or the Bengals and their three and a half points this week against Jacksonville at home and you win that bet or maybe you have another hunch that you really like this week, $300 in bonus bets to then use across the app, whether that's same game parlayes, whether that's NFL futures, whatever your flavor is, Fandual has it covered.
It's quick. It's easy. It's the best way to add a little bit more energy, a little bit more excitement.
If you need it, the Bengals give you a lot on your Sundays. So if you're ready to play,
download the FanDuel app, you can check it out at FanDuel.com. You can get started there.
That's fandle.com to place your first $5 bet that if you win, you get $300 and bonus bets to use
across the app. All right, Jake. Let's make a pivot and talk about this defense and dive into that.
coming up in just a minute, but you had a thought or two on Joe Burrow and the offense as they
look to rebound and get to that 30 point mark. That's my expectation. 30 plus Bengals. Go ahead, Jake.
Yeah, I think it's just such a different matchup than we saw in week one. Like, there are some
similarities in Josh Heinz Allen, Miles Garrett. Miles Garrett's obviously a much better player.
Heinz Allen's still a really good pass rusher. There's some similarities in that there's some good
corners or some good linebackers for Jacksonville.
And another similarity, and something that I think will be very interesting is it's a cover
three, cover 16 for the most part.
They're going to do some man stuff on third downs, but well Jacksonville, but the first
year defensive coordinator have the courage like the Browns did to play so much man on third
downs.
The other big difference, I think, is how much is Jacksonville going to try to blitz Joe Burrow?
Ola Koon, who is the best linebacker, Foyer Ola Kuh,
The best linebacker for Jacksonville played every defensive snap for them last week.
Blitzed 11 times individually.
Jacksonville, on the whole, blitzed over 30% of the time against the Carolina Panthers.
Now, typically, you don't carry the same approach against Bryce Young as you do against Joe Burrow.
So don't necessarily expect that to be the same.
But the week one approach from Jacksonville suggests the Bengals will have to win outside the numbers.
And Joe Burrow and this offensive line will need to be ready to diagnose very,
very muddy pictures that Jacksonville is presenting in their disguise where they're putting six,
seven guys on the front. And you have to decipher which of those guys are coming, which of those
guys are dropping when they're sending a corner on a slot blitz. And you have to be ready for all
those things. Very different approach from what they got from Jim Schwartz Brown's defense in
week one from just a game plan and schematic perspective. So interested to see how the Jaguars,
of course, adapt. I don't expect the same game plan that they got for Joe Burroughs.
that they had against Bryce Young,
but it could be a totally different approach that we see
that the Bengals have to get ready for this week
in terms of deception.
And that's a theme for me with the way the Jaguars are playing football this year.
A lot of disguise on both sides of the ball.
And what I think is interesting is the talk about Travis Hunter
playing more on defense.
And when I think of him as a corner,
I think a lot of Bengals fans are going to go to,
oh, when a contested catch situation,
Jamar Chase and T. Higgins are going to win.
And probably Andre.
You're probably right.
But what if he's jumping routes?
What if he's diving?
What if he's got an angle?
What if he comes out of nowhere and is able to undercut a route?
And so that's part of that confusion, part of the deception.
When you have a guy with those kind of ball skills, I think it's a really interesting approach that the Jags could take.
And I don't know.
I don't know how many snaps he's going to play on defense.
I will say this.
I think there's pressure on the Jaguars to use him more on both sides.
And so how do they use him?
Is he involved enough in that deception where he can play 15 to 20 snaps at corner?
Because if so, it's a real factor because it's a wide receiver out there.
And maybe he just gets crushed or maybe he's undercutting routes and playing the ball.
And it's a real weapon to use.
So it's the unknown factor that is Travis Hunter on defense is certainly something that I'm aware of.
And I know Joe Burrough is going to be aware of.
Yeah.
And I think if he does play more, it's partially because that third corner, if it's not him, Jerry and Jones would be where I'm looking.
If I'm Joe Burrow, like these linebackers, good linebackers, like I said, you're not necessarily picking on these linebackers.
Maybe you're picking on Andrew Wingard a little bit at safety if you're looking for weak links on this Jacksonville defense.
But Jerry and Jones would be the other one who would be outside when the Bengals go to 11.
I am very interested to see how much the Bengals go to 12 versus 11 personnel.
this week, a lot of two tight-end stuff against Cleveland last week.
I would have liked to have seen them go to more three-wide receiver sets to try to take
advantage of that weak link at corner that the Browns had.
They opted to instead go with a lot of 12 keeping tight ends in for chips, for
pass-walking purposes.
And so how that approach changes or doesn't change in week two also will be very interesting.
But like you said, let's pivot.
Let's talk about this defense because where they stood up in the run,
in week one and Cam Taylor Britt was the sore thumb that stuck out.
And there's a leash conversation I think to be had around Cam Taylor Britt this week to some point.
Mike Pennell now, part of the team obviously showed up in a significant way, I think, in week one,
showing that the Bengals have that nose tackle depth now.
But Travis AetN, sorry, and Beechal Tuten, fast, explosive running game.
offensive line and tight end in Brenton Strange that really executed in that run game for Jacksonville
last week, different beast in the run game this week for the Bengals defense to start making some
believers that they are different from last year. For sure. I mean, just the overall skill talent
starting with the quarterback. It's just a different level. It just is. And so it's a nice
challenge. It's nice to be at home versus having to deal with this in that type of Cleveland environment
where you're on the road as a young defense that is trying to figure it out.
And yeah, I mean, as much as I talked about Travis Hunter on offense or on defense,
him on offense against Cam Taylor Britt,
let me just ask you, Jake, are you comfortable one-on-one in that situation?
No, and I think that's part of like they need to keep Cam outside.
They moved them around a little bit more probably than you would like.
I kind of like the Cam Taylor-Brit matchup with Brian Thomas stylistically.
Like Thomas has more wiggle to his game.
Just stylistically, right?
Think about how he's played against some of the straight line, bigger wide receivers in the past where he can be physical.
That's where Cam has been okay in the past.
It's with, yeah, the slot matchup with Travis Hunter, no thanks, not interested.
Brian Thomas has more wiggle than like a DK Metcalf, for example, the kind of receiver that Cam Taylor Britt has had some success against in the past.
But if you keep him on the outside, hopefully it's a bounce back game from Cam.
And we're not talking about week one much longer because it is a big game for him.
The spotlight is certainly on Cam Taylor Britt.
And they're an explosive offense, and the spotlight is on Cam.
And I've never, let me ask you this.
Have you ever heard Zach Taylor?
No.
Discuss a player like this when asked about Cam's comments because on Monday,
Cam said he went up to Al Gold and said he needed to play better.
Zach was asked about that on Wednesday.
You got to prove it.
We got to prove that it's going to be consistent during the season.
But I thought Cam had a good training camp, and we got a lot of confidence in him.
Some of the plays were not his best plays in the game the other day.
So, again, I see better than I hear us to just show us that you're going to improve on that,
and I trust that he will.
I see better than I hear.
Yeah, the old Marvin line.
You know, the old Marvin line that.
And so Zach has reached his Marvin era, is what his take away.
I'm kidding.
I'm kidding.
But, like, that is, don't go out there and get bald on, get moths by Brian Thomas and shook up by Travis Hunter.
That's all I'm saying, because there is some.
pressure on 29, clearly.
Yeah, I think it'll be interesting to see if they change anything at Corner this week.
It was a lot of hubb up before the game last week about Josh Newton being the quote-unquote
starter and then DJ Turner out snapped him roughly two to one.
I think we both still probably see some rotation there, Dax Hill playing all over the place.
But what differences are there from a rotation perspective, week one to week two for the Bengals?
At Corner, a question, certainly a defensive line where there was a little bit of a vote of confidence.
sounded like in Miles Murphy.
Maybe we see a little bit more Miles Murphy.
Certainly, I think Shamar Stewart is showing that he can be disruptive in a bull in a
china shop out there.
And so what changes do we see on that front as well?
Third down packages, do we see a little bit more BJ Hill as that fourth pass rusher instead
of Chris Jenkins?
That's a question that I have.
That I'm going to be curious to see how that evolves over the course of the season where
those guys are kind of in a time share.
They're using BJ Hill more on base downs.
But a lot of questions in terms of how some of those rotations are going to shake out at corner, a defensive line.
And again, this is an offense that executed at a high, high level in the run game.
Liam Cohen bringing over a lot of motion, a lot of deception, a lot of play action.
And just go look at Brian Thomas Jr's reverse touchdown last week where the entire formation,
including Brent and Stranger starting to the right before sticking their feet in the ground.
And then moving back out to the left, really affecting that defense.
and Brian Thomas Jr. goes in untouched, Diami Brown, had a great game as a Walker last week.
And so, well, that's not like the star that you're thinking about.
When you're thinking about Brian Thomas and Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etyn,
some interesting skill players, some interesting scheme that the Bengals will have to deal with this week.
But let's continue to talk about the defensive matchup with Trevor Lawrence
and that Jaguar's offense to finish the show coming up next.
This episode is brought to you by Mazda's moving the game.
game forward. For those who believe it's not just about playing the game, it's about redefining
it. There are moments that do more than put points on the board. They move crowds, move culture,
and keep moving the game forward. This week's moment that move the game forward is none other than
DJ Turner coming up big for the Bengals when they needed it most, an interception that secured
their victory in week one. The first victory in week one in multiple years, just the second of
the Zach Taylor era, the second of the Joe Burrow era, and DJ Turner.
is the guy that delivered.
When you follow what moves you,
the unexpected is only the beginning.
And just like there's more to every highlight,
there's more to a Mazda vehicle.
Mazda, move and be moved.
James,
as we wrap up on this defense a little bit
and start to think about what we're going to get out of this game,
I expect Brian Thomas
to have a better game this week, right?
I think we're all on the same page there.
I expect Trey Hendrickson to give Walker Little
a tough time in that matchup.
I'm excited to see the Shamar Stewart Anton Harrison match up.
I'm excited to see if the Bengals can potentially take advantage of Ezra Cleveland,
who throughout his career has been somewhat of a liability despite all the athleticism
as he is starting at left guard for the Jaguars.
But the biggest liability potentially, despite all of his talent,
is Trevor Lawrence in this game.
Does he get antsy?
Does he go big game hunting?
You go look at that J.C. Horn interception that he threw on the deep ball trying to get to
Brian Thomas Jr.
Last week, that's a ball that Trevor Lawrence had no business throwing.
And so these teams, both, as Zach Taylor pointed out, big turnover teams in week one.
And that's going to be a big factor again this week.
That turnover battle, I think, could be the deciding factor here.
Because while I expect the offense to be better, I expect the defense to be a little bit worse.
I think that the Jags offense is just better.
I think that it will make things harder.
I expect a higher scoring game.
And so those turnovers could be a big deal.
No doubt. For sure, they're going to be a big deal. That was the difference. The two highlights for DoorDash and Mazda. What are they? They're Jordan Battle and DJ Turner interceptions. Those are game changers. And so it's a huge factor. That's why I mentioned Travis Hunter as a defensive player. Because what if he, I mean, think about it, a slant to Jamar and suddenly Travis Hunter's there. Or there's a little out route and he pops up out of nowhere. He cuts in front of Andre Yosebosch or whatever. You know, there's, there's, there's, there's,
plenty of scenarios where that's the case where Joe could get fooled. We've seen that.
The Bengals lost to the Ravens here. So Zach Taylor's 0 and 6 in week two games. The Bengals
lost to the Ravens here because Gino Stone tricked Joe Burrow week two a few years ago.
Got Gino Stone a contract here. You know, I mean, and so though that play could be the difference.
And yet I look at that and I say, well, who do I trust more with the ball? And I think I'm higher
on Trevor Lawrence. I praised him a ton on yesterday's show.
the crossover with Tony, I certainly trust Joe Burrow to take care of the ball more than I do
Trevor Lawrence. And so can this defense that doesn't have Travis Hunter necessarily, but
does have some good players, obviously some guys that can get some pressure, can they force a
turnover or two? Is this when Shamar gets the production that everyone's wondering about and discussing,
even though all the advanced numbers show how disruptive Shamar Stewart was last week? Maybe
it is. And they need it to be. That would go a long way.
You want to get this crowd involved early.
You get a strip sack, a batted pass that's intercepted,
some kind of big swing, big change.
Because I do believe, much like we saw in the second game last year,
the Monday night game against the commanders in week three,
I think the offense comes out that way and performs at that level.
And it was Joe to Jamar early,
and you just felt like whatever was on their shoulders was lifted,
and they were going to play free.
Maybe I'm wrong.
Maybe it's not going to be this week.
But I think it will be on Sunday for this offense.
Yeah, I think it's just that they have to find the matchups that they can win,
like Joe Burroughs said, when you have the star receiver,
is a star quarterback and you have a team that's going to challenge you outside the numbers
because they're going to play a bunch of middle field closed defense,
unless they shock me and go to cover two.
I think they had two cover two snaps in week one.
And the defensive coordinator does not come from a history of a team that's
playing a bunch of middle field open coverages or not playing a bunch of quarters or cover two in
his history like what he did in Miami before he became a defensive coordinator with the Jacksonville
Jaguar. So you got to expect a bunch of middlefield closed if you're the Bengals and got to expect
a bunch of disguise. But when you have Jamar Chase and T. Higgins and Joe Burrow, you should win
those matchups. Tyson Campbell, really good corner. Jordan Lewis, get him in the slot and have him
deal with the slot matchup. Find the matchups that you can win.
and take advantage of them.
The Bengals were very close to hitting on a couple of those plays last week,
didn't quite do it with a foot out of bounds
or a great play from Greg Newsom, a blind pass breakup.
So hit those plays this week.
You're feeling a little bit different.
The offense is moving a little bit different.
And you probably get something moving that doesn't look like it did at the end of the game.
That's obviously a big part here.
Stop the runs.
you can have fun. Another big part here
when you're on defense. That's
going to be the phrase that we're talking
about with this team, unless they show
like, yeah, on a week to week basis, we can't
stop the run. We put all this emphasis
on it and we're doing it.
They do it again this week after the way the drags
ran the ball in week one against Given, the
worst run defense in the NFL in
2024 in the Carolina Panthers.
Then you can start to continue,
well, then you can continue, I guess, to build
that belief in this defense, having
that solid foundation it needs.
Yeah, and it does start there.
It still does because Carolina was in trouble.
If you let Travis E.T.N. take over.
Well, then Joe's on the sideline.
And then Trevor doesn't have to be put in those situations
or he has to make those big decisions.
And doesn't feel like he needs to force the ball and can take his time.
And it will open up the field because you're thinking about how you stop the run.
So Mike Pennell, you need it again, man.
Eat big man.
They need him to eat again.
Obviously, he's on the 53 man now.
Obviously, T.J. Slayton, Shamar Stewart, all these guys that were really good and nasty.
They need to be nasty up front.
And if they do that, then I think they'll be able to slow down this Jags rushing attack for sure.
Big game.
Not like the schedule gets easier.
Road trip after this to Minnesota and then to Denver hosting Detroit going to Green Bay the next four weeks.
It's not getting easier.
Got to hit this one.
And we will have you covered with.
your post-game takeaways right here on Lockdown Bengals after the game. We'll talk to you then.
We'll have your reaction. Until then, thanks for listening to this episode of the Lockdown Bengals
podcast. Ho-Day and have a good one.
