Through two games, the Bengals’ defense looked like it had undergone a significant transformation in the offseason — partially due to the addition of Dexter Lawrence.
But then came Sunday’s divisional matchup against the Steelers, with Pittsburgh’s offense generating 411 yards — including 138 on the ground — en route to defeating Cincinnati 30-27.
Lawrence, in his eighth pro season, provided some perspective after the game.
“I think it’s a reminder to show y’all that we’re not going to go undefeated,” Lawrence said, via Jay Morrison of SI.com. “No year is gonna be perfect. … Our goal wasn’t to go undefeated. So we’ll own this one. We’ll come back next week and go out there and play.”
Lawrence added that Sunday’s performance “wasn’t us.”
“We know we can’t allow that; however it comes, however they try to do it,” Lawrence said. “We made a lot of mistakes, and that’s what kept the game close and then ultimately helped them win.
“A lot of what was going on was self-inflicted. … You watched the game. You know what happened. I don’t think it was anything special that they had going on. We just didn’t do well on our end.”
The Bengals will get another tough opponent next week when the Jaguars come to Cincinnati.