Keys to the game: How do the Bengals beat the Bucs?

The Cincinnati Bengals are getting ready to host Tampa Bay on Sept. 13 as the regular season gets underway at Paycor Stadium.

Tampa and Cincinnati enter the season with high expectations. Both teams underachieved in 2025, winning a combined 14 games. The Buccaneers and Bengals are popular picks to win their respective divisions and haven't played each other since 2022, making for an intriguing Week 1 matchup.

Here's what the Bengals must do to beat the Bucs and start the season with a win.

Score early and don't allow Bucs' pass rush to get rolling

Tampa Bay's head coach, Todd Bowles, is known for the different pressure packages he uses in a game.

Bowles has the respect of the Bengals' coaching staff and players.

"Todd has been doing it for a long time," head coach Zac Taylor said of the Bucs' coach. "Todd's got a lot of respect for the pressure they put on you. He's got the pieces he likes. Makes it challenging for an offense."

Yaya Diaby , Vita Vea and rookie Reuben Bain are three players who are most likely to cause issues for Cincinnati's offensive line. Diaby led the Bucs with seven sacks last season. Vea is regarded as one of the top interior defensive linemen in the NFL, with 4.5 sacks and seven tackles for loss in 2025. Vea signed a one-year extension with the Tampa ahead of the season after requesting a trade.

The Bengals will need to get the ball out of quarterback Joe Burrow 's hands quickly, and if Cincinnati can get up on Tampa early, it will negate the Bucs' ability to gain momentum with their pass rushers.

Contain Bucs' standout wide receiver Emeka Egbuka

Veteran quarterback Baker Mayfield is capable of taking over a game when he's in rhythm with former Ohio State standout wide receiver Emeka Egbuka.

In his rookie season, Egbuka proved he's an elite talent in the NFL catching 63 passes for 938 yards and six touchdowns.

Bengals cornerback DJ Turner is likely to draw the assignment of keeping Egbuka in check for most of the game alongside Dax Hill. Turner's status will be closely monitored through Sunday after appearing on the injury report on Sept.10 with a hamstring injury.

Cincinnati's front office didn't give Turner a contract extension ahead of the season for a reason. If Turner can keep a player like Egbuka to limited production, it will help his case in wanting to be paid long-term by the Bengals.

Tackle well and keep Tampa's running back duo to under 100 rushing yards

Despite a down year in the NFC South, one of the bright spots for the Bucs was the play of their running backs. Bucky Irving and Rachaad White combined for 1,160 yards on 305 carries for five touchdowns.

The Bengals struggled to tackle at a high level in 2025, and in order to get to where they want to be in late January, they must be better in this area.

If they can prevent the Bucs' running backs from big runs with sound tackling, it could force Tampa to throw the ball more. The Bengals invested in their defensive line heavily this offseason to create more opportunities to rush the passer.

Sunday's game against Tampa will be the first time the Bengals' new-look defensive line will take the field together for a regular season game.