Dexter Lawrence’s interior dominance and Amarius Mims’ flawless pass protection fuel Cincinnati’s 2-0 start, as elite PFF grades validate the Bengals’ trenches becoming a championship-caliber force.
The Cincinnati Bengals are 2-0 for the second consecutive season, and they’ve been playing great complementary football. The defense has been one of the best in the entire NFL, and while the offense hasn’t looked the best, it has done enough with the opportunities created by the defense.
There have been players on both sides of the ball who have put together a solid two weeks of play to begin the year, specifically on the offensive and defensive lines. But two have stood out among the rest, and the numbers are backing that up.
Cincinnati made a splash move over the offseason by bringing in Dexter Lawrence to lead the defensive line. Some argued that the Bengals shouldn’t have given up a first-round pick for Lawrence, who was coming off a down year statistically, but the eight-year defensive tackle has wasted no time showing his worth is far more than one first-round pick after dominating in training camp.
On the surface, Lawrence’s stats don’t jump off the page through the first two games. He’s recorded three total tackles and one tackle for loss, all coming against the Houston Texans, but according to Pro Football Focus, he’s been the top interior defensive lineman in the NFL.
His 91.5 PFF overall grade ranks first among 107 qualified interior defensive linemen this season, and he ranks fourth with eight pressures. He also has a pass-rush grade of 87.3, ranking fifth, and a run-defense grade of 89.9, ranking second at the position.
Lawrence’s impact is evident, and it even led to Cincinnati securing its first win without giving up a touchdown since 2022.
On the other side of the ball, it’s tackle Amarius Mims climbing up the PFF leaderboard with his stellar play. He was already named one of Cincinnati’s top building blocks, and he’s living up to that title in his third season.
On 72 pass-blocking attempts, he has allowed zero pressures or quarterback hits and has not been called for a single penalty. Mims ranks fourth among 66 qualified tackles in pass-blocking grade at 84.9. His run-blocking grade brings his overall ranking down to 27th, but he is quickly becoming an elite NFL tackle.
He was tasked with blocking Texans star Will Anderson Jr. for much of Sunday’s contest but still managed to keep a clean slate. Mims is a big reason for the Bengals’ offensive line taking a step forward already this season.
Both Lawrence and Mims have been great stories for Cincinnati to start the 2026 season. They’ve been outstanding throughout the first two weeks, but they’ll have to continue having this type of impact if the Bengals want to compete for a Super Bowl.
