Cincinnati Bengals Have a Pressure Problem They Can’t Hide

The Cincinnati Bengals have strengthened the lines that once defined their biggest weakness, but left tackle Orlando Brown Jr. remains the matchup Pittsburgh can attack in Week 3. Locked On Bengals host Joe Goodberry said Brown’s recent struggles make him the Steelers’ clearest route to disrupting quarterback Joe Burrow, particularly if T.J. Watt moves across the formation to find favorable looks.

Brown starts on an offensive line that has otherwise provided Cincinnati more stability through two games. Right tackle Amarius Mims has not allowed a pressure across 38 pass-protection snaps, Goodberry said, giving the Bengals a reliable answer on one edge while Brown has drawn extra help from tight ends, chips and protection slides on the other.

That imbalance creates a decision for Cincinnati. Helping Brown can limit the Steelers’ edge rush, but it also puts more on center Ted Karras and the rest of the protection unit to identify blitzes correctly. Goodberry pointed to communication breakdowns against Houston as a warning sign, arguing the Bengals cannot let the attention paid to Brown open free paths elsewhere.

Pittsburgh Steelers edge rushers Watt, Alex Highsmith and Nick Herbig give the defense the personnel to rotate pressure without relying on one player for every snap. Locked On Steelers host Christopher Carter said Watt has aligned over left tackles more often early this season, a deployment that could put Brown directly in the spotlight Sunday.

The Bengals still have the offensive firepower to punish an aggressive plan. Burrow can get the ball out quickly, while wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins force defenses to account for the entire field. But if Cincinnati must keep dedicating resources to its left edge, Pittsburgh could make the Bengals work through a more limited menu of calls than the one that has helped the offense find balance.

Cincinnati’s improved trench play gives it a more credible path to controlling this AFC North matchup than in past meetings. The immediate question is whether Brown can hold up without turning protection help into a weekly necessity, because the Bengals’ ability to let Burrow attack Pittsburgh’s secondary may depend on it.