The Bengals, Browns and Ravens all left Week 2 with very different emotions, but each locker room had a clear message: keep the standard high, keep the belief intact, and don’t let one result define the next one.
Cincinnati’s defense set the tone again in its win over Houston, holding the Texans out of the end zone and backing up another strong effort against the run. On the field, the approach was simple and blunt: meet physicality with even more of it. Bengals DT Dexter Lawrence said that mindset started right away.
“For sure, that’s why you (have) to set the standard early and just be on them early,” Lawrence said, via Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic. “Play physical … We knew they wanted to be physical.
We had to out-physical them. That’s a great play in that moment.
You have to make other great plays in other great moments.”
Joe Burrow noticed the defensive surge too, and said it changed how he handled his own game. With the Bengals controlling things on that side of the ball, he leaned into a safer approach.
“You just play a little bit more conservatively,” Burrow said. “Those guys have been great.
You have that rush and that coverage; you try not to mess it up. They were incredible.”
In Cleveland, the mood was just as charged, only for a different reason. The Browns came into Week 2 with plenty of noise around them after a rough opening week, and their win over the Buccaneers gave the team a much-needed lift. It also fueled a strong show of support for Deshaun Watson, whose name had been floating in bench speculation before Week 3.
“How cool is it to see what he’s been able to do after what he’s been through?” Browns LB Carson Schwesinger said via Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer.
“To go out there and have the game he had today is pretty special and pretty cool to watch. A lot of respect for what he’s been through and how he’s come out of it - I mean, two injuries like that are hard to get back from.
And just seeing him and seeing how he approaches every day has been really cool. And I just think it’s really cool today to go down and get the game-winning touchdown.”
Browns HC Todd Monken also pushed back hard after the win, using the moment to answer the familiar “Browns is the Browns” talk with a profane response. He also said he expects the run game to improve as the offensive line keeps building chemistry together. And on Watson specifically, Monken sounded like a coach betting on growth rather than judging the moment as a finished product.
“I’m happy for Deshaun. I expected improvement and I expect continued improvement.
There’s a lot of football left in him. He just hasn’t played in a while… I see him as a young player…that is gonna continue to grow.”
(Zac Jackson)
Baltimore’s day ended on the opposite end of the emotional spectrum. The Ravens had a double-digit lead in Week 2 before falling to the Saints, and it was a familiar kind of collapse - the 15th time since 2019 that the franchise has lost after leading by 10 or more points. CB Marlon Humphrey said the team knows exactly how draining that pattern has become.
“The consensus amongst the team is like, everyone is kind of tired of doing what we just did,” Humphrey said, via the team’s website. “I think it is a lot of older guys - a lot of guys that it just feels like it is time. Hopefully we will make this a hiccup and not [let] this be a bridge that is final and cannot be repaired.”
In Other News...
Bengals Just Created A Depth Chart Battle Fans Should Watch
Following Cincinnatis Week 2 win, the back end of the roster offered one of the more interesting developments to come out of Sunday. Reserve defensive ends Cedric Johnson and Cashius Howell both made their presence felt with pressures and sacks, while on offense Erick All Jr. and rookie Colbie Young were on the field enough to suggest the Bengals are willing to keep expanding the group of players they trust in meaningful spots.
The bigger picture is a depth chart that may not be as settled as it looked a week ago, especially with the Bengals leaning into heavier personnel and more multiple tight end sets. Those looks naturally open the door for different combinations, and they also create a path for some reserves to push established starters for more snaps if the production keeps matching the opportunity. [Read more 🡒]
Boye Mafe Is Giving Bengals Fans A Real Reason To Believe
Boye Mafe has given the Bengals something they have been searching for on the edge: a steady, disruptive presence who can change the feel of a defense. Early in the season, the Cincinnati signing has already flashed the kind of impact that gets attention around the league, including eight quarterback pressures in a recent game against the Houston Texans, while his pass-rush and run-defense grades have landed him among the NFLs top edge defenders.
For a Bengals defense trying to build on a better start, Mafes production matters because it does not look like a one-game spike. His all-around work has started to resemble the kind of roster move that changes a units ceiling, the sort of addition Cincinnati once found with Trey Hendrickson. The comparison is an encouraging one for fans, even if the bigger question is how far Mafe can keep carrying that level of disruption as the season moves on. [Read more 🡒]
Bengals Enter Week 3 With The AFC North Suddenly In Flux
Week 2 did a number on the AFC North hierarchy, and the Bengals are walking into Week 3 with the division suddenly looking more unsettled than it did seven days ago. Cincinnati sits atop the standings after a weekend that saw Cleveland answer some of the early skepticism with a win over the Buccaneers, while Pittsburgh ran into trouble against the Patriots and Baltimore slipped out of first after a late loss.
For the Bengals, the bigger picture is simple: the margin in this division already feels thin, and the next round of games could shuffle it again. With the Browns trying to build on their bounce-back showing, the Steelers still searching for a steadier footing and the Ravens trying to recover from a damaging finish, Cincinnati has a chance to keep control if it handles the coming stretch. [Read more 🡒]