The Cincinnati Bengals host the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 9 of the NFL season on Sunday, November 3, 2024 at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio.

How to watch: Fans can watch the game for free via a trial of DirecTV Stream or fuboTV. You can also watch via a subscription to Sling TV, the first month you get half a discount.

Here’s what you need to know:

What: NFL Week 9

Who: Cincinnati Bengals vs. Las Vegas Raiders

When: November 3, 2024 (11/3/24)

Where: Paycor Stadium

Time: 1:00 PM ET (12:00 PM CT)

TV: FOX

Free live stream: DirectTV stream, fuboTV

Here’s a sneak peek via Associated Press:

CINCINNATI (AP) — Approaching the halfway point of the season, the Las Vegas Raiders and Cincinnati Bengals are underperforming teams still searching for some sort of identity.

Both struggled to control the ball, with the Bengals and Raiders ranking 28th and 31st in rushing yards in the league, respectively.

Las Vegas (2-6) finished its 27-20 loss to the Chiefs with just 33 yards on the ground, an average of 1.6 per carry. Alexander Mattison ran the ball 14 times for 15 yards.

Their defense was inconsistent, with Cincinnati (3-5) allowing 20 unanswered points in the second half in last week’s 37-17 loss to the Eagles.

The Raiders are one of fourteen teams in NFL history to trail by double digits in each of their first eight games of a season.

“We have to run the ball. That’s not possible,” Las Vegas coach Antonio Pierce said. ‘So we keep going again. Get back to work. Like I told the guys, man, we have to do this for nine more weeks and that’s what we signed up for. So it’s not easy, it’s difficult. Don’t like it. I wish it were easier.”

The Raiders are looking for all kinds of answers as they try to stop a four-game skid.

“It’s just something we have to keep working on and hammering home on,” Pierce said.

The Bengals are looking for their first home win against four losses at Paycor Stadium. Their three wins this season have come against teams who have currently won five games between them.

“I guess you can say this shouldn’t be where we are right now, but this is where we are right now,” Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow said. “I don’t think you can look at it that way. You have to adapt to the situation that presents itself, and this is the situation we are in.”

Confident hollow

After the Eagles’ loss, Burrow said with confidence that the Bengals are capable of winning seven of their final nine games to reach the 10 wins likely needed to make the playoffs.

His attitude may be justified as he has historically been at his best in November and December. He has a 20-8 record in games from November to January. His best month is December, when he has a 6-2 record and a 108.3 passer rating.

Most of those wins came during the 2021 and 2022 playoffs.

Last year he was sidelined from November 16 when he suffered a wrist injury. He was 1-1 in November at the time.

“The one thing I do know is we have one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL,” Bengals special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons said this week when asked about the state of the team. “That’s always a good start. When you have a quarterback like we do, and some teams don’t, it always gives you hope.”

Stop the rush

The Chiefs spent much of Sunday in the second half blitzing the Raiders, recording five sacks for the game. Given the Bengals’ tendency to send extra rushers, the Raiders are preparing a similar plan this weekend.

“They’re doing well,” Las Vegas quarterback Gardner Minshew said. “A couple of them (defensive backs) are good. (Trey) Hendrickson is great from the edge, so you have to be aware of it, you have to have a plan for how they attack you like that.

Gesicki intervenes

The Bengals signed Mike Gesicki as a passing tight end, and that’s what he did. With receiver Tee Higgins out last week with a quad injury, Gesicki had his second seven-catch game of the season, leading the team with 73 receiving yards. He has 25 receptions for 253 yards this season, including 91 in a 26-25 loss to the Chiefs on September 15.

Back in the middle

Jackson Powers-Johnson won the Rimington Trophy last season at Oregon, which goes to the nation’s top center in college football.

But when the Raiders drafted him in the second round this year, they did so with the idea he would play guard. That is until starting center Andre James went out with an ankle injury in Sunday’s 27-20 loss to the Chiefs.

Powers-Johnson finished the game at center and is practicing at that position this week in case James cannot play.

“I’m just going to continue to lean on (his experience under center) and lean on the preparation,” Powers-Johnson said. “It definitely helps to get back on track.”

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