The Bengals’ defensive line is finally back at full strength
Maybe it was the return of defensive tackles B.J. Hill and Sheldon Rankins. Or, the fact that Mike Hilton was back patrolling the slot for the Bengals. Whatever it was, the Cincinnati Bengals defense was back to playing at a level not seen around here for the past couple of years.
And it could not have come at a better time.
“Fortunately, we were able to lean on the defense today,” said quarterback Joe Burrow, whose offense could only manage 17 points against the Giants Sunday after putting up 35 points per game over their last three contests. “It was great to see them step up like that. They needed that one. We needed that one.”
Hill, who was drafted by the Giants in 2018 and later traded to the Bengals before the 2021 season, came home with a vengeance, putting up seven tackles and two deflected passes that stopped drives and led to no points. He also managed to hit Giants’ quarterback Daniel Jones on two occasions, one of which led to a Germaine Pratt interception.
Hilton, who spearheaded a players-only meeting a couple of days before the game, put up five tackles, a pass defenses, and added a quarterback hit. Rankins, who is still not back to full strength, added a couple of tackles and made his presence known in other ways as the Bengals’ defense rose up to allow their fewest points in five years.
“It’s like I was telling people earlier this week,” Pratt said. “If our D-linemen show up, and now that they’re healthy, today they showcased. It starts with the D-line. What defense is good without key defensive linemen on the field?”
Sam Hubbard, who managed four tackles and a pass defense of his own and helped anchor a run defense that held New York running backs to 63 yards on 20 carries, agreed.
“It went a long way,” Hubbard said. “I was really happy to see (Hill) make those plays. He does things the right way. So reliable. Works so hard. He deserves a night like this. The performance we put on tonight shows we have the right guys. Just a great unit finally united … You don’t realize how many bodies we were down until everybody back. But we were really thin there for a while.”
And Cincinnati’s much-maligned defensive backfield held Jones to 22 completions on 41 attempts for 205 yards (an average of only five yards per completion) and an interception, good for an overall rating of only 57.5, his lowest since a season-opening loss to the Vikings.
“I’m just really proud of the way the defense played,” head coach Zac Taylor said. “The players, the coaches, the way that they fought all week, and put on a performance like this was special.”
Maybe things are finally starting to move in the right direction.
