Bengals defense making waves, leaving QB situations scrambling in its wake

The Cincinnati Bengals’ defense has been on a tear lately, while other franchises’ faith in their quarterbacks is tearing up after facing Al Golden’s 2026 group. 

After the Bengals’ revamped defense looked the part in Weeks 1 and 2 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Houston Texans, respectively, they left question marks and regret in their wake. 

Now, in Week 3, they have a chance to do it again against the Pittsburgh Steelers, who enter the game already struggling offensively, with a quarterback who may be questioning why he returned. At the same time, the franchise may wonder why it waited all offseason to bring back said QB.

Bengals rock pirate ship carrying Mayfield’s extension

The Bengals had the first shot at making the Buccaneers regret signing Baker Mayfield to a lucrative contract extension that puts him on equal footing with Joe Burrow at $55 million per year. 

Mayfield had a day, fumbling the ball three times and losing each of them, including one that ended in a scoop-and-score for Cincinnati’s defense. The Bengals also sacked the Bucs’ signal caller four times. 

Remorse brewed quickly for some in Tampa’s building, even though no one would admit it publicly. After all, we should take Week 1 results with a grain of salt as teams acclimate to a new season. At least that is what everyone claims.

The Bucs' problem is that Week 2 didn't assuage concerns that they did the right thing in paying Mayfield, as he went 21 of 34 for 182 yards, one touchdown, and an interception in a loss against the Cleveland Browns. 

Alex Kay of Bleacher Report lists Mayfield as one of five contracts that teams already regret after only two weeks into the season. 

The Bucs' regret likely stems largely from what the Bengals did to him in Week 1. As Kay notes, "Despite being compensated as one of the NFL's best at his position, Mayfield hasn't played anywhere close to a top-five level through the first two weeks of the campaign… He's turned the ball over four times and taken seven sacks, a large reason why the Bucs are off to an 0-2 start and are already in real danger of missing the playoffs for the second consecutive year.”

Bengals made CJ Stroud’s bet riskier, Texans less bullish

In Week 2, Al Golden’s defense proved that their play against the Buccaneers was not a fluke. And even though Cincinnati failed to get a turnover against the Houston Texans, as it turns out, they wouldn’t need one. 

The Bengals’ defense got four sacks on CJ Stroud and held the Texans to six points. 

For those asking questions about the way CJ Stroud performed on Sunday, know that the Bengals’ defense did that to him and the Texans’ offense. 

Unfortunately for the former Ohio State Buckeyes QB, he bet on himself ahead of the season, turning down a $50 million per year extension with the hopes of making closer to $60 million per year.

That bet is looking more like a loss after the first two weeks of the season and a six-point performance against the Bengals. But at least Cincinnati’s players are being more respectful about it than the Bills’ defensive back CJ Gardner-Johnson. 

On the other hand, Cincinnati’s defense might have done a service to the Texans by allowing them to reevaluate, or at least recalculate, an extension for Stroud, something the Buccaneers are wishing they could do right about now. 

Bengals can hand out a 2-for-1 regret special vs. Rodgers, Steelers

After the first two weeks of passing around packs of regret to an organization and a franchise quarterback, the Bengals’ defense has a chance to do both against their division rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

QB Aaron Rodgers decided to return to the Steelers at the young age of 42 this year. He will turn 43 in December. 

Rodgers clearly wants to keep playing, as he would love nothing more than to show everyone, and himself, that he can still perform at a high level and lead his team to the playoffs. However, this season has not gone swimmingly for the grizzled vet. 

Rodgers isn't t the only one who may end up regretting his reunion with Pittsburgh. The Steelers waited most of the offseason, including free agency and the draft, for a definitive answer on whether Rodgers would return. 

While the Steelers may have known that Rodgers would return, they might have moved differently throughout the offseason if he hadn't.

Now it is too late. And despite being 1-1, the Steelers' offense is one of the worst in the NFL. 

They've had very few chances to score this season. They have the third-fewest plays run in the red zone thus far this season, behind the Atlanta Falcons and New England Patriots. As a result, they rank 31st in scoring, behind only the Falcons.

Now in Week 3, the Steelers and Rodgers face the Bengals’ defense that has already left one organization likely questioning a recent contract extension and another QB lamenting after not signing his in its wake.

Perhaps after facing Cincinnati, the questions about where Pittsburgh goes from here will reach fever pitch in the Steel City, making them just the third franchise to have their season rocked in the wake of the Bengals’ overwhelming defense in the first two weeks. 

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