The Cincinnati Bengals (3-2) take on the Detroit Lions (0-5) Sunday to kick off a three-game road swing. After seeing the way the team started against the Jacksonville Jaguars, who are also winless, on Thursday Night Football, the Bengals are emphasizing a faster start.
Defensive end Sam Hubbard and safety Jessie Bates expressed their team needs to have a sense of urgency during practice and heading into Sunday's game at Ford Field. Although the Lions have yet to win a game this season, they've played each team close.
The Bengals don't want to be the team that gives the Lions their first win of the season.
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"I know exactly how this team is going to play," Hubbard recalled of his own experience of playing on a winless team. "We have to play our game and not allow us to be the team they get their first win on."
Hubbard and Bates were both on the roster in 2019 when Cincinnati did not get its first win until Dec. 1. They know what it feels like to be on the other side of this matchup.
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The Lions are five games into their season with a new head coach, general manager, coordinators and quarterback. There's a lot of change taking place in Detroit, similar to what happened in Cincinnati when Zac Taylor took over in 2019.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell is known for his tough, physical approach and his team resembles his personality on the field. Detroit has lost two of its five games by two points.
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"We’re going to play an 0-5 Detroit team and you turn on the film and they don’t look like an 0-5 team," Bates said.
One of the Bengals' biggest Achilles' heels to their season so far is their inability to start games fast. Specifically on offense, Cincinnati has struggled to score points in the first half of games.
The Bengals are looking to bounce back from an emotional loss to the Green Bay Packers in overtime in Week 5 and get the bad taste out of their mouths. According to Hubbard, the loss was " a tough one to shake" for a number of reasons.
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