(CNN) — Coming into this season, all the talk around the Cincinnati Bengals was about whether they would squander another season with Joe Burrow .

Even by his own lofty standards, the quarterback had an incredible season last year, leading the league in passing yards, completions and touchdowns.

And yet the Bengals did not even make the playoffs, going 9-8 and missing out on the postseason in the final weekend of the regular season.

But, with the arrival of rookie first-round pick Shemar Stewart at defensive end, the return of Trey Hendrickson from a contract standoff, and perhaps a renewed sense that the team has something to prove, hopes were high that this year’s Bengals defense might go some way to matching the output from the likes of Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase in the offens

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