With Hendrickson Doubtful, Cincinnati’s Defense is Against the Wall

Stop us if you’ve heard this before: the Cincinnati Bengals defense is not good. And, in the final game before the trade deadline, the Bengals have an opportunity against the Chicago Bears to either show they want to contend in the weak AFC North or if they will sell off pieces to rebuild. While the likelihood of a Bengals trade one way or another is slim, for better or worse, this week’s game could be a deciding factor for the Bengals’ season.

At 3-5, the Bengals are second in the AFC North, now tied with the Baltimore Ravens (who started 1-5). A win over the Bears before the bye keeps the Bengals afloat. With the division-leading Pittsburgh Steelers on a two-game slide and hosting the 7-1 Indianapolis Colts, Cincinnati can get to the bye just a half-game back.

In front of them is the Bears, a 4-3 team that has been up and down thus far this year. The Bengals’ best defender, Trey Hendrickson, is doubtful for the game as of Friday. If he cannot go, the onus is on the Cincinnati defense not to lose the game as it did against the New York Jets.

With Hendrickson Doubtful, Cincinnati’s Defense is Against the Wall

Someone Please Step Up

It’s been well established to this point that Hendrickson is the extent of the Bengals’ pass rush. Even with him, the Bengals have the worst scoring defense and worst total defense. Following the loss, the defense had a players-only meeting. In the wake of that meeting, McKinnley Jackson, a third-round pick from the 2024 class, requested a trade. Considering the fact that he’s been a healthy scratch all year and hasn’t seen the field despite how poorly the unit has played, it’s unlikely other teams are clamoring for his services.

Against Chicago, pressuring Caleb Williams will be the key. Without Hendrickson, the Bengals will have to find something from Myles Murphy, Shemar Stewart, and Joseph Ossai. Considering that the trio has 3.5 sacks and six quarterback hits (compare that to Hendrickson’s 4.0 sacks and seven quarterback hits). Ossai leads the way with seven hurries and is second with 11 pressures. After him, there’s a wide gap between him and the next defender (Murphy with five).

With Murphy and Stewart continuing to be non-factors, it’s making fans think that the Bengals’ entire draft strategy is to pick players who they know won’t be good enough for second contracts. As nihilistic as that mentality is, it hasn’t been wrong. Outside of Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase, how many first-round picks have been brought back on second contracts? Not many. There were a few in the prime Marvin Lewis era, but other than that, a lot of strikeouts.

Dre Kirkpatrick was the last first-round pick not named Chase or Burrow to receive a multi-year extension from the Bengals…and he was cut with two years left on his deal. There was a run of three picks in four years to get multi-year extensions, but overall, since 2000, it hasn’t been great.

It’s time for one of them to step up. Cedric Johnson was activated off the IR, so maybe a jolt can come from last year’s sixth-rounder?

Maybe Try Tackling?

The Cincinnati defense leads the way with 84 missed tackles through eight games. The next-worst team, the Washington Commanders, has 65. Will there be a break in the disappointing play this week? D’Andre Swift only has two forced missed tackles this year, as does his backup, Kyle Monangai. Caleb Williams only has one.

It seems about as elementary as it gets, but if the Bengals tried tackling their opponents, they’d do better.

The Bears’ offense presents a great opportunity to get better. However, Ben Johnson is great at getting his players in the best situations for success. Out wide, D.J. Moore has four forced missed tackles.

Demetrius Knight and Barrett Carter have been holding down the linebacker roles as rookies. While there have been some plays to make fans optimistic, there have been more plays where fans are wondering where they’re going. Exhibit A: