The Detroit Lions and Cincinnati Bengals both kick off their preseason schedule on Thursday night. For the Bengals, it’s an opportunity for the starters to knock off their rust, before the reserves come in and start battling for roster spot consideration. The Lions are taking a different approach. Coach Dan Campbell said the team will rest the majority of their starters against the Bengals, apart from a select few—most notably, first-round rookie Blake Miller. That will give the reserves a bunch of time to make their case for backup jobs and maybe even push the starters for playing time. It sounds like Detroit will wait until next week’s home preseason game against the Washington Commanders to put their starters on the field. On this post, we will be providing drive-by-drive analysis, combined with highlights, injury news, and score updates for the game.
When the game kicks off at 7 p.m. ET, just come back to this post, and refresh for updates as the game proceeds. First quarter
The Bengals won the toss and deferred, giving the ball to the Lions and rookie quarterback Luke Altmyer first. The drive got off to a promising start. Altmyer delivered a nice swing pass to Jacob Saylors for an early third-down conversion, and he hit Cedrick Wilson on a beautiful ball for a 23-yard gain. However, on the next play, Altmyer’s pass bounced high off of Isaac TeSlaa’s face and was picked off.
Detroit Lions vs. Cincinnati Bengals live chat
The 2026 Detroit Lions season is nearly underway. The team has descended upon Paycor Stadium for their preseason opener against the Cincinnati Bengals. All eyes will be on the Lions’ young players and the veterans fighting for roster spots on Thursday night. Detroit may not be playing many starters, but the Bengals are, which should create an interesting dynamic. Read Article >
