Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Cincinnati Bengals, Week 1 2026

Buccaneers vs Bengals opens the 2026 season for two teams that watched last January from home. Cincinnati finished 6 and 11. Tampa Bay started 6 and 2, lost seven of eight, and ended 8 and 9. Both rosters turned over hard since then, and Tampa Bay handed its quarterback the largest contract in franchise history five days before this kickoff.

Kickoff is 1:00 PM ET on Sunday, September 13 at Paycor Stadium. From that moment this page stops being a preview. The live score, game leaders, box scores, play by play beside the game flow chart and full team statistics all load right here and refresh on their own. Nothing to reload.

Below are the Buccaneers vs Bengals broadcast details, the Week 1 injury picture on both sides, and what Cincinnati built on defense over the summer.

Buccaneers vs Bengals Start Time, TV Channel and Live Stream

FOX carries Buccaneers vs Bengals, not CBS, which is worth a second look on a Sunday grid crowded with AFC games. Kevin Kugler has the call with Daryl Johnston and Allison Williams on the sideline. NFL+ streams it on mobile inside the local market, NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube TV covers out of market viewers, and Game Pass International on DAZN handles the rest of the world. Radio runs on WXTB 97.9 FM in Tampa and WLW 700 in Cincinnati.

Baker Mayfield Is Now the Highest Paid Player in Buccaneers History

Tampa Bay and Baker Mayfield agreed to a three year, $165 million extension on September 8. That is $55 million a year, the biggest deal the franchise has ever signed, and it runs through 2029.

Mayfield had set training camp as his deadline for talks and said so publicly when no offer came. Owner Joel Glazer called the contract a statement of belief in his leadership.

What the money buys is still open. Mayfield threw for 3,693 yards with 26 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 2025, and Pro Football Focus charged him with the most turnover worthy plays in the league while tying him for sixth in big time throws. He also works under a new play caller, Zac Robinson, the eleventh of his nine year career.

Buccaneers vs Bengals is his first start under the new deal.

Cincinnati Traded a Top Ten Pick to Fix Its Defense

Three straight seasons out of the playoffs with an elite passing offense pushed the Bengals to spend on the other side of the ball. Dexter Lawrence II is the centerpiece. Cincinnati sent the No. 10 overall pick to the New York Giants for the three time Pro Bowl tackle, then added a one year, $28 million extension.

On September 7 the club named Lawrence one of seven captains, before he had taken a regular season snap in stripes. Bryan Cook and DJ Turner II joined him as defensive captains. Zac Taylor opened camp by writing 6 and 11 on the meeting room board, and the roster around that number is not the one that produced it.

Joe Burrow, three months shy of 30, put it plainly. The veterans brought in this offseason, he said, upped the cultural dynamic.

Buccaneers vs Bengals: Who Is In and Who Is Out

The Buccaneers vs Bengals injury sheet reads kinder than it did in August.

Cincinnati. Ja'Marr Chase hyperextended a knee and Tee Higgins took a heel contusion, but Taylor said on September 7 he feels good about both. Safety Dax Hill is back from a hamstring issue and likely on a snap count. Rookie edge Shemar Stewart is very unlikely to play after hyperextending a knee in late July. Guard Brian Parker II and nickelback Ja'Sir Taylor are on injured reserve for the first four games.

Tampa Bay. Receivers Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan are back at practice, along with linebacker Christian Rozeboom, tackle Justin Skule and first round edge Rueben Bain Jr. Running back Sean Tucker and linebacker SirVocea Dennis are the two still unclear.

Two rookies open as starters for Tampa Bay. Second round linebacker Josiah Trotter inherits the spot Lavonte David held for 15 years before retiring. Cornerback Jacob Parrish moves to the boundary opposite Zyon McCollum with Benjamin Morrison still out. Chase and Higgins will test both early. The receiver room changed too: Mike Evans left for San Francisco after 12 seasons, so Egbuka and a returning Chris Godwin Jr. carry the load.

Rosters are set at 53. Follow both squads on the Buccaneers and Bengals pages, watch the first NFL standings of the year fill in, and check every kickoff on the 2026 NFL schedule.

Paycor Stadium Reopens After Its Biggest Renovation Since 2000

This is the first regular season game inside a rebuilt Paycor Stadium. Phase one finished before the season. Every restroom was redone, nursing rooms included. The canopy level added Go Route grab and go stands and self checkout kiosks. Club lounges gained copper tiger stripe columns and jungle leaf flooring, suites gained full size refrigerators, and more than 1,000 new signs went up. Stadia Magazine reports that escalators, a full seat replacement and a larger videoboard follow in 2027.

Cincinnati has a name for the day. Open In Orange presented by Kroger asks the crowd to wear orange, and downtown buildings light orange across the weekend. Gates open 90 minutes before kickoff and the main lots open six hours ahead. For most of the building, Buccaneers vs Bengals is the first look at any of it.

Buccaneers vs Bengals FAQ

Buccaneers vs Bengals sets a quarterback who just got paid against a defense assembled in one offseason to stop exactly that kind of passing game. Check back Sunday for inactives and the live score.

Last updated: September 9, 2026