The Rams take the first of back-to-back trips to the Midwest this week with a visit to Cincinnati to take on the Bengals on Monday Night Football in Week 3. Kickoff on Monday at Paycor Stadium is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. pacific time on ESPN.
In advance of the contest, here is your First Look at Rams-Bengals.
Notable Bengals additions
- Signed S Nick Scott to a 3-year deal in March: Rams fans are very familiar with Scott, who rose from special teams contributor to starting safety in his four seasons in Los Angeles. The former seventh-round pick has 20 total tackles through his first two games with the Bengals.
- Signed OT Orlando Brown to a 4-year deal in March: After spending the last two seasons with the Chiefs, Brown departed Kansas City for Cincinnati to become the Bengals' new starting left tackle.
Top performers in Week 2
QB Joe Burrow completed 27 of 41 pass attempts for 222 yards with two touchdowns against one interception in the Bengals' 27-24 loss to the Ravens.
RB Joe Mixon led Cincinnati's backfield with 13 carries for 59 yards.
WR Tee Higgins led all Bengals receivers with eight catches for 89 yards and two touchdowns.
S Dax Hill paced Cincinnati's defense with 11 total tackles and one pass defensed.
On special teams, K Evan McPherson made his lone field goal attempt and all three of his extra point attempts, while P Brad Robbins averaged 40 yards per punt across three punts.
Early storylines to watch, and what they mean for the Rams
All eyes are on Burrow's status after he said after Sunday's Week 2 game against the Ravens that he re-aggravated the calf injury that caused him to miss a significant portion of training camp and the preseason.
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor told Cincinnati reporters Monday "it's hard to say right now" whether Burrow will play in Week 3. Should Burrow be unavailable, it would obviously have a major impact on the Rams defense's preparation for the game.
That being said, Cincinnati still has Higgins and fellow star receiver Ja'Marr Chase to keep the attention of Los Angeles' secondary.
Meanwhile, although this will be a Super Bowl LVI rematch, the makeup of each team's roster is much different compared to that time.
For example, Jonah Williams is the only starting Bengals offensive lineman still on their roster; he is now their starting right tackle after starting at left tackle in the Super Bowl. Right tackle Isaiah Prince, right guard Quinton Spain, center Trey Hopkins, and left guard Hakeem Adeniji are gone; those spots are currently filled by Williams, Alex Cappa, Ted Karras and Cordell Volson, with Brown holding down left tackle.
The Rams not only have a different offensive line, but a different defensive line as well with Aaron Donald the lone holdover from that starting group.
