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It seems that Myles Garrett is the problem Cincinnati can’t ignore heading into Week 18, and Zac Taylor didn’t bother dancing around it. With Garrett one sack from the single-season record, the Bengals head coach called him the best player in the league and an “absolute nightmare,” making it clear the game plan has to be built with Garrett at the center of it.
That urgency makes any defensive progress feel even more important on Cincinnati’s side, and rookie Shemar Stewart finally delivered a long-awaited moment. Ben Baby reported that defensive coordinator Al Golden was thrilled to see Stewart record his first career sack after a season that’s been repeatedly interrupted by injuries.
Golden, with the kind of humor coaches use when a storyline has dragged on for weeks, joked about the breakthrough: “I’m glad that’s out of the way so we can all move on with our lives.”
It landed because Stewart’s first sack had turned into one of those lingering topics that kept resurfacing every time the Bengals discussed their pass rush.
The sack doesn’t erase what’s been a difficult defensive year for Cincinnati, but it does give the staff something concrete to point to when talking about development, especially with the defense needing more consistent pressure overall.
On the other side of the ball, the Bengals still have Ja’Marr Chase producing at a historic pace. Jordan Schultz noted that Chase became the first wide receiver in NFL history to post 80-plus catches, 1,000-plus yards, and seven-plus touchdowns in each of his first five NFL seasons, another reminder that the offense has continued to deliver even when the season hasn’t gone to plan.
Cincinnati finishes the year at home against Cleveland on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET, with Garrett’s record chase looming and the Bengals trying to end the season with something they can actually build on.
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