Aaron Rodgers will be Bengals' early litmus test for contender status

The Cincinnati Bengals now know for sure that they'll be facing legendary quarterback Aaron Rodgers twice this coming season (health permitting) as their quest for their first Super Bowl plays out. Rodgers agreed to terms on a one-year contract worth up to $25 million, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

This was widely expected to happen. The Pittsburgh Steelers didn't have a viable QB plan outside of Rodgers. He wasn't going to pass up one last ride with his old Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy.

Every single year, it's proven that the first week or two of the NFL season can be deceptive. The Raiders finished with the No. 1 overall pick, and beat the eventual AFC champion Patriots at New England in Week 1.

Week 3 is when things really start to take shape. And that happens to collide with the first Bengals-Steelers tilt of the new season in Pittsburgh.

Bengals defense faces early make-or-break test vs. Aaron Rodgers & Steelers in Week 3

The season opener at home versus the Bucs should be interesting, but it won't really be indicative of what's to come for Cincinnati in 2026. Going on the road against the Texans in Week 2 will be a major test, so if things look ugly in that matchup, it won't be a surprise, nor anything to overreact to.

But we're going to learn something about how well the Bengals fare against Rodgers and the Steelers in Week 3. If the defense can't lock him up, we could be in for a very, very long season.

It feels like the Bengals have the most complete roster of the Joe Burrow era thanks to an unusually aggressive offseason. However, all the new pieces still have to come together and form a cohesive unit. Easier said than done.

There's a lot of stink to wear off from Cincinnati's terrible defenses of the past three seasons that have ultimately cost the team a trip to the playoffs each time. Even with Burrow's two major injuries, the offense played well enough in his absence to stay in the postseason mix.

The most notable additions were defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence and safety Bryan Cook. Lawrence is a one-of-one interior pass rushing force who can make Rodgers' life a nightmare in Week 3, while Cook brings physicality, sure tackling, and a championship pedigree to a position the Bengals have been troubled by ever since Jessie Bates' departure.

If not for Joe Flacco's electrifying 342-yard passing performance in a 33-31 win at home against the Steelers last season, Rodgers would've beaten Cincinnati twice. He logged a 104.2 passer rating and five TD passes versus the Bengals in 2025, and was scrambling around like he was in his prime.

No surprise at all to see this stat, which measures time to throw and actually showcases how well Cincinnati held up in the secondary all things considered.

The likes of Lawrence, Boye Mafe, and Jonathan Allen had better eat into that league-longest average time to throw figure this year — especially against the quadragenarian Rodgers. Otherwise, as mentioned, this could be one of the more disappointing seasons in franchise history.

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