Cincinnati Bengals running back Chase Brown (30) leaps across the goal line for a touchdown in the second quarter. 09.13.26 TB at CIN
JEREMY MILLER
Joe Burrow threw a pick-6, Ja’Marr Chase had just two catches for 12 yards and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers never punted, but the Cincinnati Bengals still came away with a win.
Cincinnati scored points off four turnovers, and Evan McPherson made all four of his field goal attempts to lift the Bengals to a 33-27 win over Tampa Bay in the season opener Sunday at Paycor Stadium.
Cincinnati Bengals: Defensive improvements pay off for 33-27 win over Bucs in opener
The Bengals wanted to be able to win in different ways, and they achieved that Week 1. They won openers in back-to-back seasons for the first time in Zac Taylor’s eight years.
Here are five takeaways from the win:
Defense shines
Cincinnati had just eight fumble recoveries all of last season and recorded four of them in the opener, including three of them in the first 18 minutes of the 2026 campaign. The Bengals managed 24 of their points off those turnovers.
The first turnover came after Barrett Carter wrapped up Baker Mayfield and Myles Murphy came in to help finish the sack, forcing the ball loose. Demetrius Knight Jr. recovered and returned it 27 yards for the team’s first touchdown of the season and a lead it wouldn’t lose with 6:18 left in the first quarter.
Three plays from scrimmage later, Bryan Cook forced Bucky Irving to fumble at the end of a 7-yard catch, and Boye Mafe recovered to set up Mike Gesicki’s touchdown reception. Carter then tackled Mayfield on a scramble in the red zone to force the third fumble, and Cook recovered to set up an 80-yard touchdown drive capped by Chase Brown’s 5-yard run.
That gave the Bengals a 21-3 lead in the second quarter. A fourth forced turnover in the final stanza helped set up McPherson’s final field goal to seal the win.
Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Myles Murphy (99) forces a fumble by Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) in the first quarter. 09.13.26 TB at CIN
JEREMY MILLER
“We just want to go out there and have fun and understand that as a unit, we are who we are, and we want to showcase that,” Mafe said. “And everybody’s flying around. You see us going left and right. And I think with the fact that we are getting the turnovers shows how much we’re flying around and how much we trust and believe in each other.”
Finishing the game
The Bengals have allowed five defensive touchdowns in their last six games dating back to the end of the 2025 season, and cutting down on costly turnovers was an area of emphasis this year.
Burrow’s pick-6 in the third quarter allowed Tampa Bay back in the game, down just 27-20. Last year, that would have been the breaking point where the team would spiral.
Cincinnati responded with back-to-back field goal drives and the fourth turnover in between, and the Bengals finished the game kneeling after Tampa Bay once again made it a one-score game with a late touchdown.
“You just have to take a deep breath,” Taylor said. “It turned into a one-score game right there, so it’s a little bit different (than Cincinnati’s defensive touchdown early). I loved the attitude of our guys to go down, I think we kicked a field goal after that. It took some of the momentum away from them. We were able to get our crowd back into it after a rough moment. I’m excited for how the guys responded.”
The last drive featured a couple conservative passes and some runs, but Burrow sealed the win when he connected with Tee Higgins on a high-point pass for 18 yards. Cincinnati was able to run a few more times before Burrow knelt for the final play.
Cincinnati Bengals running back Chase Brown (30) leaps across the goal line for a touchdown in the second quarter. 09.13.26 TB at CIN
JEREMY MILLER
Burrow’s slow starts
The Bengals offense wasn’t as explosive as they would like it to be, but Burrow had his best opening performance since the 2021 and 2022 AFC North championship seasons.
In 2022, he threw for 338 yards and two touchdowns but had four interceptions in a Week 1 overtime loss to Pittsburgh, and in 2021 he passed for 261 yards and two touchdowns in an overtime win against Minnesota.
The past three years, Burrow has been especially slow out of the gate, throwing for just 359 yards combined and one touchdown.
Cincinnati converted 8 of 14 third downs and was 2-for-5 in the red zone.
McPherson off to a strong start
McPherson was perfect on field goal attempts of 49 yards or less last year but missed three extra points and three field goals of 50 yards or more.
On Sunday, he was perfect, and that included a 55-yarder and 58-yarder. It was the first time in Bengals history a kicker made two field goals of 55 yards or more in one game.
McPherson said he appreciated the trust Taylor and special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons had in him to attempt those long kicks. He carried in confidence from last season and a strong preseason.
“I guess the older I’ve gotten, I found more of an importance in practice and performing well in practice,” McPherson said. “I feel like my first couple years, I didn’t really care how bad I performed in practice. I just felt like I was going to do good in the game, but now it’s flipped. I feel like if I do well in practice, I’m prepared enough to go into the game and just kind of clear mind, go out there and just kind of swing and have a good time. So that’s kind of my mindset right now is pick a target, stick to it, and just kind of enjoy the moment.”
Gesicki’s big day
While the Bucs keyed in on Chase to limit his touches, they didn’t seem to be concerned about Gesicki, leaving him open on several plays where the Bengals were able to take advantage. He led the receivers with five catches for 78 yards and a touchdown on seven targets.
Five of those targets were in the final two minutes of the first half, setting up McPherson’s 20-yard field goal to make it 24-10 going into halftime.
“It was really just some teams are going to play us man coverage, and Ja’Marr and Tee are going to do their thing, and some teams are going to play that zone,” Gesicki said. “Really it was that two-minute drill there at the end of the (first) half, and you know, me and Joe just being on the same page, finding some plays in the zone, and getting down there, getting points. But it was a fun day, and a lot of excitement.”
Burrow targeted the tight ends 11 times out of 34 passes with an intended receiver.
Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II (97) runs out of the tunnel pregame. 09.13.26 TB at CIN
JEREMY MILLER