Surging Lions look for 4th straight win at slumping Bengals, who are hoping to stop 2-game skid

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Detroit (3-1) at Cincinnati (2-2)

Sunday, 4:25 p.m. EDT, FOX

BetMGM NFL Odds: Lions by 10 1/2.

Against the spread: Lions 3-1; Bengals 1-3.

Series record: Bengals lead 10-3.

Last meeting: Bengals beat Lions 34-11 on Oct. 17, 2021.

Last week: Lions beat Browns 34-10; Bengals lost to Broncos 28-3

Lions offense: overall (6), rush (6), pass (10), scoring (1)

Lions defense: overall (12), rush (7), pass (13), scoring (15t)

Bengals offense: overall (32), rush (32), pass (30), scoring (30)

Bengals defense: overall (30), rush (26), pass (30), scoring (27)

Lions player to watch

CB Rock Ya-Sin. With a banged-up secondary, the 29-year-old Ya-Sin will have a lot of opportunities to play. He started in 13 games as a rookie with Indianapolis in 2019 and his 39th and most recent start was in Baltimore during the 2023 season. The Lions signed him as a free agent during the offseason.

Bengals player to watch

WR Ja'Marr Chase was frustrated during Monday night's loss at Denver after having five catches for only 23 yards. The 4.6 average yards per reception was his second lowest in a game with at least two catches. His 264 yards through four games is his lowest in his five-year NFL career. Chase's best game this season though was at home when he had 14 receptions for 165 yards and a touchdown in the Week 2 win over Jacksonville.

Key matchup

Lions running backs against Bengals run defense. Detroit's backs have forced 34 missed tackles (fourth in the league) for 215 yards (third). RB Jahmyr Gibbs has at least 95 yards from scrimmage and a rushing TD in three straight games. He has forced the 10th-most missed tackles with 21. David Montgomery is averaging 4.3 yards after contact, fourth highest in the league. He has gained 105 yards off missed tackles. The Bengals defense has missed 46 tackles (second most) and allowed 303 yards off missed stops (tied for first).

Key injuries

Bengals: WR Charlie Jones (Achilles tendon) was injured early in the second half last week and did not practice on Wednesday. Rookie DE Shemar Stewart (ankle) has missed the past two games.

Lions: CB D.J. Reed (hamstring) was carted off the field last week and was put on IR. CB Terrion Arnold (shoulder) left last week's game with an injury, but was cleared to practice Wednesday. All-Pro S Kerby Joseph (knee) played through an injury against Cleveland and was held out of practice Wednesday. DB Khalil Dorsey (concussion) did not practice Wednesday.

Series notes

The Bengals have won 10 of the past 11 meetings, losing only in 1992 at home.

Stats and stuff

The Lions, scoring an NFL-high 34.3 points per game, have averaged 41.3 points during a three-game winning streak after Green Bay held them to 13 points in a 14-point win in the opener. ... QB Jared Goff has nine TD passes, trailing only Lamar Jackson's 10 TD throws for Baltimore. Goff has played the same number of regular-season games (69) with the Lions and Rams, going 42-26-1 in Detroit and 42-27 with Los Angeles. ... WR Amon-Ra St. Brown. He has 27 receptions for 307 yards and six touchdowns this season, scoring in three straight games. St. Brown is the first NFL player with 25-plus catches, at least 300 yards receiving and six receiving touchdowns through four games since Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss did it in 2007. ... DE Aidan Hutchinson has a sack in three straight games and is the first Lion to have five hits, four sacks and two forced fumbles in a three-game span. ... LB Jack Campbell, the No. 18 pick overall in 2023, is the only NFL player with at least 35 tackles, a sack, a forced fumble and a fumble recovering this season. ... All-Pro Kerby Joseph has two INTs in four games after leading the league with nine INTs last season. ... The Bengals have been outscored 76-13 in their past two games at Denver and at Minnesota. ... QB Jake Browning has thrown five interceptions, third most in the league and has lost both of his starts since Joe Burrow went down with a toe injury. ... RB Chase Brown had a season-high 71 scrimmage yards last week, including 40 yards rushing. ... WR Tee Higgins has only 10 catches, the lowest total in his six-year career through his first four games. ... DE Trey Hendrickson has had a sack the past two times he has faced Detroit. ... LB Demetrius Knight became the first rookie since Minnesota's Ivan Pace in 2023 to have at least 10 tackles and an interception in a game. ... S Geno Stone had a career-high 10 tackles last week.

Fantasy tip

Detroit WR Jameson Williams is averaging 21.4 yards per catch, ranking second in the NFL.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

 

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