Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Boye Mafe said the team wanted to use Week 1 to declare its intent to the rest of the NFL and to gain a better understanding of the retooled defense's capabilities.
"We came into this game saying we’ve got to make a statement," Mafe said. "We’ve gotta know who we are as a defense, and you felt it today, and it wasn’t just one person. It was the whole room. And that’s one thing I wanted."
Week 1 always comes with some limitations, especially for defenses that likely haven't done any real tackling since the end of last season. But by the end of the Bengals' Sept. 13 opener against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Paycor Stadium, it was hard to imagine AFC North rivals and others wouldn't have noticed Cincinnati's defensive
output.
The Bengals won their opener 33-27, and the defense produced like the team's personnel decision-makers would have hoped after an offseason personnel overhaul.
Defensive coordinator Al Golden's unit scored a touchdown − a 27-yard fumble was recovered and returned by Demetrius Knight Jr. in the first quarter − and held Tampa Bay's offense to 20 points. The Buccaneers' defense provided a pick-6 touchdown to make the game tighter in the second half.
Dexter Lawrence Jr., the organization's prized offseason trade acquisition, didn't register a tackle. Plenty of others, Bengals both new and veteran, contributed big days statistically.
Jordan Battle quietly led the team in tackles. Barrett Carter was Cincinnati's second-leading tackler and sacked Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield on the play where Knight, his counterpart at linebacker, eventually scored.
Knight finding the end zone in Week 1 was a stark contrast to the 2025 Bengals defense, which accounted for one return touchdown all season.
"I mean this in the most humble way possible: We expect to make those plays," Carter said.
Mafe finished with a sack and a fumble recovery. TJ Slaton and Bryan Cook also had fumble recoveries. Jonathan Allen notched a bruising sack of Mayfield in the second half.
For every Buccaneers punch, the Bengals defense had a counter-punch.
After Tampa Bay's field goal on the opening drive, Cincinnati collected three fumble recoveries on three consecutive Buccaneers drives. Points resulted from each of those fumbles, and the Bengals went to halftime with a 24-10 lead.
When Tampa Bay made it a one-score game in the second half, Cincinnati forced another fumble.
Point to any Bengals defensive player in the locker room after the game, and that individual more than likely did something positive or registered some kind of desirable statistic in the contest.
"We know the team goes as we go," Lawrence said, "so we put that responsibility on our back, and we knew we needed to play physical and strong and with a motor, and that's what we did. ... We gotta keep proving it. We've matured enough to know we can't allow all that (talk) to hinder who we are. We've got to be ourselves and go dominate."
There's plenty clean up, too. Again, that's partly the nature of Week 1 in the NFL. The modern training camp experience is shorter on hitting and intensity.
Perhaps that why the Buccaneers made their opening drive look easy en route to a 3-0 lead. BJ Hill had a pre-snap penalty that moved the visitors forward, and star corner DJ Turner II was beat by Ohio State product Emeka Egbuka for a drive-extending 17-yard reception. Tampa Bay ultimately marched 56 yards on 11 plays and converted two third downs.
Late in regulation, Tampa Bay's offense found the end zona for the second time via a Mayfield scramble.
"It wasn’t gonna be perfect. We knew it wasn’t gonna be candy and rainbows," Carter said, "but the Bengals are 1-0.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 'We gotta keep proving it.' What the Bengals defense show in Week 1 win
