2 reasons why Bengals fans shouldn't be worried amid 0-2 start (and 2 reasons why they should)

Reason to panic: Defensive performance

The biggest difference between last year's 0-2 start and this year's 0-2 start is that the defense has not looked up to par this time around. Sure, in the Week 1 opener, they did their part until they were completely gassed out but the run defense had a rough go in that one.

In Week 2, the entire defense looked off. Lamar Jackson was completing easy passes and doing whatever he wanted and the rushing attack was running roughshod over the Bengals. Also, the pass rush couldn't get anything going despite two starting offensive linemen being out for Baltimore. Simply put -- This defensive performance was concerning.

Andrew Russell broke down the defensive differences between the 2022 team and the 2023 team pretty well. He noted that last year's group played the 11th-fewest snaps while this year's team has played the fifth-most snaps. He also pointed out that last year's group rarely missed tackles and this year's group hasn't been as good in that department. Lastly, he mentions that the open target percentage in coverage went from second-best last year to second-worst this year.

Last year's slow start could be blamed almost entirely on offense but that's not the case this year. The run defense has been abysmal and the secondary played poorly in Week 2. The pass rush has also left a lot to be desired. As a whole, Lou Anarumo and the defense have to be better if the team wants to crawl out of this 0-2 hole.

The good news is that there are 15 games remaining in the regular season and plenty of time for this Cincinnati Bengals squad to turn things around.