The Cincinnati Bengals are set to make their 2026 debut Sunday when they host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to kick off what hopes to be a historic season in the Queen City.
It also starts with one of the Bengals’ toughest home matchups of the year, as Tampa enters the game favored to win the NFC South for the fifth time in the last six seasons.
Now, let’s take a look at the Bengals’ three keys to victory and a 1-0 start.
Effective Bengals running game
The Bengals are trying to incorporate more under center into their offense this season.
While they saw mixed results working it in throughout training camp, the Bengals will have a chance to show how effective it can be on Sunday.
The Buccaneers struggled to defend play-action, which is another reason the Bengals will need to stick with more under-center plays in their opening game this week.
For it to be effective, the Bengals have to establish and stick with the running game. This will open up play-action passes and keep Joe Burrow from taking too many hits throughout the game.
If the Bengals struggle with the running game early, how quickly would they ditch under center? Burrow has always stated he feels most comfortable working from shotgun, with everything laid out in front of him to diagnose.
Will this be the year that he evolves his game to cut down on the amount of hits he takes each year? An effective running game would go a long way toward making that a reality.
Slow down Bucs’ pass rush
The Buccaneers drafted Rueben Bain Jr. with their first round pick this year. They bring back an explosive pass rusher in Yaya Diaby opposite of him. Vita Vea has a brand new contract this offseason, and commands a lot of attention in the middle of the defense.
The biggest X-Factor for that Tampa Bay pass rush is Calijah Kancey. He missed 12 games with an injury during the 2025 season, and the Buccaneers’ defense was just not the same because of it. Kancey is one of the most disruptive defensive tackles in the league when he is fully healthy.
The Bengals return all five starters to their offensive line. Communication will be a huge factor in the Bengals being able to slow down the Tampa Bay pass rush. This will be a really good early season test for the Bengals offensive line.
Limit big runs from Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay has a very talented young running back returning in Bucky Irving. They also added Kenneth Gainwell to the running back room. He played well against the Bengals during his time with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Bengals ranked last in the league as a run defense during the 2025 season. They gave up 147.1 yards per game on the ground last year. To become a more effective defense, they have to start by stopping the run.
They went out and made a massive addition in Dexter Lawrence to man the middle of the defense. Alongside him is veteran Jonathan Allen. The two starters at defensive tackle were BJ Hill and TJ Slaton; they will both now become more rotational players for Cincinnati.
Bryan Cook is a physical presence on the back end of the defense and is known for his reliability as a tackler. That is the complete opposite of the guy he is replacing in Geno Stone.
The Bengals cannot be one of the worst teams in the league when it comes to missed tackles again this year. Their first test will come against Irving, Gainwell, and the rest of the Buccaneers’ rushing attack.
