Backup quarterback play will carry a good chunk of this one, and that's where Cincinnati has an edge on paper: Joe Flacco signed on to be Burrow's insurance policy, a luxury Detroit doesn't have at the same level behind Goff. It's a preseason opener, so don't read too much into any of it — but it's the first data point of the year, and both fan bases will be watching how the new pieces move.
Detroit's last five games of 2025 were a mixed bag — a 44-30 laugher over Dallas, then three straight losses including a 10-23 dud in Minnesota before closing with a road win over Chicago. That's the version of the Lions that has to show up more consistently in 2026, especially with Jahmyr Gibbs now anointed the offense's bellcow and Amon-Ra St. Brown reportedly looking sharper than ever coming out of minicamp.
Cincinnati's swing the other way — a brutal shutout loss to Baltimore sandwiched between two blowout wins over Miami and Arizona — sums up a Bengals team that can look unstoppable on offense and unwatchable on defense in the same month. Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins remain the headline act, and if the new-look front seven holds up even half as well as the offseason additions suggest, this defense doesn't have to be historically bad, just competent.
Both injury reports lean encouraging for August. Detroit's questionable tags — Brian Branch's Achilles, Kerby Joseph's knee — are camp-conditioning concerns more than season-threatening ones, and Isiah Pacheco slotting in behind Gibbs gives the backfield real depth. Cincinnati's list is thinner still, with Erick All and rookie center Connor Lew the only real question marks. Neither team is walking into this preseason opener banged up in a way that changes the calculus.
It's a low-stakes opener by nature, but it's also the first live look at two teams with very different offseasons — Detroit betting on continuity, Cincinnati betting on a defensive facelift finally paying off. Preseason results rarely matter beyond training camp bragging rights, but for two fan bases starved for August football, that's plenty.