The Cincinnati Bengals will open the 2026 season at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 13, per a report from Jordan Schultz . The game features a matchup of No. 1 draft picks with Joe Burrow (2020) squaring off against Baker Mayfield (2017) for the fourth time. Burrow has yet to beat Mayfield, losing three times to him as the starter quarterback of the Cleveland Browns (twice in 2020 and once in 2021). Mayfield is 3-1 with 16 touchdowns and four interceptions in four career starts at Paycor Stadium. This will be the ninth time Burrow has faced another quarterback who was selected with the No. 1 pick. He’s 4-4 in those matchups with wins against Jared Goff (2021), Matthew Stafford (2023) and Trevor Lawrence twice (2021 and 2025). The other loss came against Alex Smith (2020) in the game in which Burrow tore his ACL as a rookie. This will mark the third time during Zac Taylor’s tenure the Bengals have opened against an NFC opponent but just the 10th time in franchise history.…