DJ Turner II Dives Into Bengals Defensive Issues Following Loss to Pittsburgh: 'Have to Limit Explosives'

Cincinnati's playoff hopes are going further down the drain as the season moves along.

CINCINNATI — The Bengals' defense entered Sunday's game allowing the most explosive plays among any NFL unit this season and those issues continued with big plays in both facets out of Pittsburgh's offense.

The Steelers outgained an opponent for the first time this season as they passed for 278 yards and ran for another 153. All it took was a coordinator change and a matchup against the Cincinnati Turnstiles.

“They ran the ball. We have to limit explosives," cornerback DJ Turner II said after the game. "Those were the two things — limit explosives and (them) running the ball.”

It sounds simple in theory, but Cincinnati's been hemorrhaging yards all season and ridden a fortuitous streak of turnovers to competence.

The defense ranks 25th in EPA/play allowed, 28th in yards allowed, 19th in points allowed per game, and 30th in success rate. It's a straight-up bad unit, that entered the year with expectations to help drive a Super Bowl run.

According to Jay Morrison, they just allowed 1,370 yards over a three-game span for the 12th time in team history and first since the dreadful 2019 season. This is far from a championship-level defense.

“Film study. Film study and practice," Turner said on how to fix the ailments. "We just have to hit it hard, honestly, just doing that. We can definitely make improvements.”

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