The Tampa Bay Buccaneers March into Cincinnati to take on the Bengals in a game featuring two teams looking to bounce back after disappointing 2025 seasons.

Much of the Bengals' hardships a year ago stemmed from quarterback Joe Burrow's serious turf toe injury early in the season, which required surgery and kept the perennial MVP candidate out for three months.

Despite having arguably the NFL's best wide receiver duo in superstar Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, the Bengals offense was not able to overcome the loss of its leader.

Cincinnati's defense was also a mess in 2025. First-round pick, edge rusher Shermar Stewart, was embroiled in a contentious contract dispute with the club that lasted through the first week of training camp. The standoff was over the contract's language regarding guaranteed money. For a while, it looked like Stewart might not sign with the Bengals and re-enter the 2026 NFL Draft.

To make matters worse, Trey Hendrickson, one of the NFL's best sack artists, was also a "hold-in" while looking for a lucrative contract extension. He never got one from the Bengals, who instead added $14 million to his 2025 salary, which ended the dispute.

Hendrickson would play only seven games and record four sacks after posting 17.5 in each of the previous two seasons. Core muscle surgery ended Hendrickson's season and his time in Cincinnati. He signed with the division rival Baltimore Ravens in free agency this offseason.

The defense looks much improved this season, despite the loss of Hendrickson. Cincinnati traded its first-round pick, 10th overall, to the New York Giants for star defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence.

The Bengals used their second- and third-round draft picks on edge rusher Cashius Howell and cornerback Tacario Davis, and also added edge rusher Boye Mafe and safety Bryan Cook in free agency.

The improvements made by the Bengals had The Athletic predicting their defense would finish in the top 10 in points allowed this season, after being the 30th-ranked defense a year ago.

The Bengals aren't the only team that looks better this season.

Tampa also made several high-profile additions to its defense. The Bucs added linebacker Alex Anzalone, edge rusher Al-Quadin Muhammad, and DT A'Shawn Robinson, among others, in free agency.

The team followed by drafting edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr. in the first round, linebacker Josiah Trotter in the second round, and CB Keionte Scott in the fourth round.

Bain already looks like a future superstar. His debut is the most anticipated of a Bucs rookie in years. What can we expect from Bain in his first game?

The offense, fresh off signing QB Baker Mayfield to a huge contract extension, should greatly benefit from better health.

Last season, Tampa's offensive line was decimated by injury. All five starters are fully healthy to start the year and should return to being one of the league's top units.

The Bucs' wide receivers were also hit hard by the injury bug, with Mike Evans, Chris Godwin Jr., and Jalen McMillan all missing large chunks of the season, as did top running back Bucky Irving.

Week 1 provides us with a fun non-conference battle between a pair of teams looking to put last year's failures in the rearview mirror.

Tampa's much healthier offense will go toe-to-toe against the Bengals' greatly improved defense, while Cincy's explosive offense will square off against Tampa's revamped defense.

The Bucs go into Cincinnati as 3.5-point underdogs. They have failed to cover the spread in nine consecutive contests.

Mayfield has had great success playing the Bengals in Cincinnati over his career. Can he keep that going in Week 1?

Despite the two new-look defenses, I expect this game to be relatively high-scoring, with the Bucs coming up just short on the road.

Prediction: Bengals 30, Bucs 27