Bengals-Bears: 5 things to watch

If anyone can find a silver lining in owning preseason tickets, it's that if you hold "Game 3" in your hands, that has become the traditional showcase game for NFL teams as they prepare for the season opener. Usually, it's the game in which teams play their starters the longest in a true dress rehearsal.

This week is a little different for the Cincinnati Bengals, who played just days ago in Tampa Bay. The Chicago Bears are a team with a new coaching staff and a MASH unit offensively. It may not be your traditional third game, but there are definitely aspects that the Bengals want to highlight and improve upon.

Here are five things to watch for Saturday:

1.Early defensive dominance. Yes, dominance. First, the Bengals' defense got off to a sluggish start Monday night in Tampa Bay. Second, the players said they want to start quickly like in Week 1 against New York when Eli Manning managed just 22 first-half passing yards. Of course, motivation is not enough to lead to an improved performance – and the Bears are paid professionals as well. But, some their best professionals will not be participating Saturday.

Jay Cutler's top wide receiver, Alshon Jeffery, is injured. His No. 2 receiver, Eddie Royal, is injured. No. 3 receiver Marquess Wilson is injured. No. 1 draft pick Kevin White was hurt before camp began.

I understand it's the preseason, but guys like Marc Mariani and Josh Bellamy shouldn't be able to do much of anything against Adam Jones and Dre Kirkpatrick.

Oh, Bears starting left tackle Jermon Bushrod hurt his back this week. Starting right tackle Jordan Mills is nursing a calf injury, too. In other words, a veteran group like the Bengals' defense looking to rebound and get out of the gate quickly, and healthy, is primed for an excellent showing.

2.The offensive line. Barring unexpected setbacks, Andre Smith should be back at right tackle with the starters, and rookie Jake Fisher and Trey Hopkins should be making their 2015 debuts in the first wave of reserves. After allowing two sacks against New York, the Bengals allowed four against Tampa Bay. The Bears aren't very good up front, but they are running a 3-4 scheme and new defensive coordinator Vic Fangio (most recently of San Francisco) is known for being able to create pressure. He's going to want to see what his guys can do, and the scheme will be a good one for the Bengals to work against. It will also be the first work for Fisher and Hopkins with the other reserve linemen in game action, so chemistry could be an issue as they get their feet wet in 2015.

3.A.J. Green. Well, who wouldn't want to watch No. 18? But after a ball went off his hands on Monday Night Football that turned into a pick 6 for the Buccaneers, ESPN analyst Jon Gruden went hard on the Bengals' No. 1 wide receiver, showing several sloppy routes and poor efforts that led to Andy Dalton interceptions. Now, it's not the regular season, but no player wants to be called out like that on national television.

Green may also square up against Bears corner Kyle Fuller, a 6-foot, 190-pound first-round draft pick from a year ago. He was the first Bears rookie to win NFC Defensive Player of the Week since current Bengals secondary coach Mark Carrier did it in 1990 and intercepted four passes. But, he's struggled this preseason and will be looking to reassert himself.

4.A big offensive play. For as sharp as the offense looked against the Giants in scoring its lone touchdown as a unit, it only had to go 52 yards and took six plays to do it – the longest being a 16-yard completion from Dalton to Green. In Week 2, the longest play from the first team was a 14-yard pass from Dalton to Green. Now, you can't just will big plays to happen, but the Miami Dolphins and Indianapolis Colts not only were able to score touchdowns against the Bears' first-team offense, they also were able to tear off big plays in the pass and run games.

5.Backup defensive line play. This is the strongest position group on the team, and the stiffest competition for a spot on the final 53-man roster. Our Paul Dehner, Jr. projected that the team will keep 10 big guys up front, and undrafted rookie DeShawn Williams may make it hard for the team to sneak him onto the practice squad. It's a strong battle at the end of that room, but even the first wave of backups coming in need to continue to make positive impressions.