As the Cincinnati Bengals get set to host the Jacksonville Jaguars, here are four key matchups to watch for on Sunday at Paycor Stadium.
Parker Washington vs. Dax Hill
Parker Washington has been the top receiver for the Jaguars through the first few weeks of the season. He comes into this game with 221 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns. Bengals starting nickel corner Jalen Davis was placed on IR Tuesday afternoon.
The Bengals have officially moved Dax Hill into the slot corner role on their depth chart. That doesn’t necessarily mean
he will play there all the time, but until Ja’Sir Taylor comes off of short-term IR sometime in the next few weeks, we are likely to see him playing there a lot. Hill will be tasked with slowing down Washington this Sunday as the Bengals host the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Emmanuel Pregnon and Robert Hainsey vs. Dexter Lawrence
Emmanuel Pregnon is the Jaguars rookie left guard. He has had some inconsistent performances to start the season, as should be expected from any rookie offensive lineman. In week 2 against Denver, Pregnon allowed four pressures during the game.
However, during week 3 he didn’t allow a single pressure against a very talented Patriots defensive line. Center Robert Hainsey, on the other hand, did allow a couple of pressures and a couple of quarterback hits against New England. Hainsey finished that game with a 36.2 pass block grade.
Meanwhile, Dexter Lawrence was able to record 2 more sacks against the Steelers this past week. Lawrence has been an absolute force in the middle of the Cincinnati defense. It wouldn’t be surprising to see a lot of Trevor Lawrence (no relation to Dexter) scrambling all game long on Sunday.
Orlando Brown Jr. vs. Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker
Brown is likely to face off against Hines-Allen more often, but should see both of the Jaguars’ talented pass rushers at times on Sunday. Brown had a rough performance against the Texans during Week 2, giving up three sacks on the day. He was able to bounce back against the Pittsburgh Steelers for the most part. He allowed just two pressures all game, and he did not surrender a sack.
Hines-Allen has six pressures, 1.5 sacks, and a forced fumble during the season so far. He has 62.5 career sacks. Opposite of him is typically Travon Walker. The former No. 1 overall pick has 13 pressures so far this season. He has 29 career sacks of his own coming into this one.
Amarius Mims has yet to surrender a pressure through three games, so the Jaguars defense will be looking to attack Orlando Brown Jr. If he can hold up as he did against the Steelers, the Bengals should be able to put up a lot of points again in this one.
Ja’Marr Chase vs. Travis Hunter
The Jacksonville Jaguars traded up to select Travis Hunter with the second overall selection during the 2025 draft. The second-year player is now focused more on being a full-time corner, which was always the most logical spot to play him.
While he will occasionally get in for some offensive plays, he has been allowed to really focus on the defensive side of the ball this season. He recorded his first interception of the year in Week 3 against the New England Patriots.
He will likely face off a lot against Ja’Marr Chase. After the first week when Chase recorded just two catches for 12 yards, he has been seeing a lot more targets come his way over the last two weeks. Chase has 173 receiving yards with three receiving touchdowns over the past two weeks. He and fellow receiver Tee Higgins are playing at a high level right now. I would expect that to continue on Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
