Jordan Battle Highlights Key Factors For Bengals Defense Against Lions

 The Bengals are welcoming one of the top teams in the NFL on Sunday to Paycor Stadium when Detroit comes to town. Dan Campbell's squad has arguably the best offense in the NFL, ranking first in points per game (34.3) and fifth in EPA/play.

It's going to be a massive challenge for a Bengals defense ranked 27th in scoring and 25th in EPA/allowed. Despite the mismatch, Jordan Battle is ready for the challenge.

"They're very balanced, very good in the run game," the safety said about Detroit. "Got two great running backs. They got a great play-action game as well. So you have to have good eyes as a defense, read our keys, play to play their pass first, and then react to the run. Jared Goff is an experienced quarterback. We've got to be good with our pre-snap looks. You know, don't try not to give them the answer before the ball snaps. And, you know, just hold our pa, and then play from there."

Cincinnati can afford to be more aggressive and go for the high-variance plays in a game not many expect them to keep close, let alone win.

Detroit is hovering between a 10 and 10.5-point betting favorite, which would be its largest road betting spread as a favorite since the early 1970s. Stopping the run is a massive issue for Cincinnati right now, ranking 24th or worse in success rate and EPA/rush allowed.

Fixing something on the ground or through the air is imperative to keeping fans around for the final quarter and avoiding the blowout.

"We've got to stop the runs, contain the perimeter runs, get them in third and longs, and be able to use our whole playbook on third down. Be able to have fun with it on third down. It starts on first and second down, early downs," Battle declared.

The game kicks off Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET.