Tough Conversations and Scheme Tweaks Have Bengals' Defense Playing Best Ball of Season

The Bengals have to find a way to win their fifth-straight game on Saturday night if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Elise Jesse | Jan 3, 2025

Dec 28, 2024; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bengals safety Jordan Battle (27) reacts after a play against the Denver Broncos in the second half at Paycor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images / Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

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Cincinnati Bengals

Joe Burrow and his offense have been surging upward all season long, but after falling to 4-8 in early December, Cincinnati was staring at the possibility of a lost season. That's hard to do with Burrow having the best year of his career.

The onus has been on Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo and his side of the roster to make things right in the final five games of the regular season. One of the first things Anarumo did was identify what the talent on the roster was successful at and simplify the playbook so his players could be in position to make big plays without having to overthink during game time.

“I think it helps a lot, helps the younger guys play faster, helps the older guys play faster too so it definitely helps,” defensive lineman BJ Hill said.

Jordan Battle, a young guy on the roster who was fighting for playing time at the start of the year agreed that the adjustment has been a big reason why this team has managed to create 12 takeaways over their four-game win streak.

“Whenever your DC can find little adjustments, like what play calls to call, what personnel to have us in, that just shows great signs of a great DC,” Battle said. “Being able to figure that out and simplify things for us allows us to play faster, I think that’s been the key allowing us to play faster, getting our eyes in the right place and being able to make plays whether that’s in the passing game or the run game.”

It wasn’t just the adjustment to the playbook that has made a difference. After Cincinnati lost to Pittsburgh 44-38 in Week 13, Akeem Davis-Gaither didn't mince words when talking about the harsh reality that this defense needed to face head-on.

“Guys need to have some tough skin and be honest with each other and if you lacking in this somebody need to tell that person so we can fix it and not sweep it under the rug and let it be a problem these last five weeks,” Davis told BengalsTalk.com. “We have to look in the mirror and see what we did wrong as individuals and then as a unit make the corrections.”

Following week 13’s loss, there were tough conversations had among the players. Performing below potential was no longer an option for this defense.

“I think we all came to an understanding that our season is on the line," Battle said. “The guys who are going to be here and be committed, that’s the guys we want in the room, if you’re not going to be committed then you might as well not even walk through those doors.”

The intense, but necessary message flowed through the locker room and attitudes started to shift. At a time when the team could have started planning their trips to Cancun, they didn’t. They looked in the mirror and focused even harder on the next 5 tests ahead of them.”

Cincinnati would go on to win their next three games and after beating Cleveland at home.

“He’s really turned into that leader role,” Higgins said of Burrow. “He’s been a lot more vocal than I think he has been in the past and he’s commanding the offense.”

As Burrow stepped into the most successful and vocal season of his career, he needed the same thing from the leaders on the other side of the ball. Guys like Mike Hilton, Germaine Pratt and Hill were up to the task of not only talking the talk but walking the walk, helping the new wave of players buy in at a critical time of the 2024 season.

“It says a lot about the leaders of this team, it says a lot about the heart of this team,” Battle said. “Knowing our season is on the line, knowing we could easily just be like okay we not going to go to the playoffs or our record is horrible there’s no way to get out of this slump. The fact that we were able to get out of it, come together, all buy in at a time where we were probably trending in the wrong direction and come out Monday night against the Cowboys, play good football and then you know from there just take off and skyrocket, its been nice to see and its been nice to be a part of it as well. Getting to see every guy’s face after the last few wins its been a good feeling in the locker room so that’s always what you want. We get back in the locker room and everybody is talking, everybody is laughing and having fun, I hope we get another one this week.”

The feeling in the locker room has undergone a transformation as well, these last four weeks have brought more success but they’ve also brought new life to the Bengals locker room.

“I guess we play our best football in the cold, right?” Hill said with a smile. “We just had to fix some little stuff here and there, I always had faith in this defense. I know we have some great football players in here, great young guys, great guys who have been in new roles so I wasn’t worried at all I knew we had to fix the little things to be a great defense.”

With the final game of the regular season holding playoff consequences, Cincinnati’s defense must come out ready to exact revenge on Russell Wilson and Pittsburgh’s offense. Wilson had one of his best games of his career against the Bengals, completing 29of-38 passes for 414 yards and three touchdowns in Paycor Stadium.

Allowing 520 total yards of offense to the Steelers again on Saturday night will end Cincinnati’s playoff hopes.

“We know it is going to be a physical game, a four quarter fight," Battle said. "We are going to have to try to do everything awe need to do defensively to get off the field on 3rd down, create manageable 3rd downs, and get the ball in Joey B’s hands so he can make plays."

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Tough Conversations and Scheme Tweaks Have Bengals' Defense Playing Best Ball of Season

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