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Myles Murphy Stamps 2025 Ascent With Season-Best Outing Against Ravens

Cincinnati may have hit on a first-round pick after a few years of waiting.
Russell Heltman|
Dec 14, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Myles Murphy (99) celebrates his sack during the first quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at Paycor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images
Dec 14, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Myles Murphy (99) celebrates his sack during the first quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at Paycor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images | Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

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Cincinnati Bengals

CINCINNATI — Myles Murphy's play has been a nice bright spot for the Bengals during another lost season in the preciously short Joe Burrow era. The 2023 first-round pick is looking like the first non-Burrow or Ja'Marr Chase top pick this decade to be a hit. Dax Hill was in that spot after last season, but has fallen back to earth in 2025 (57.8 Pro Football Focus grade in 2025 after a 68.2 mark in 2024).

Murphy had two sacks and three quarterback hits in the 24-0 loss to Baltimore. He's now tallied 34 quarterback pressures this season (24 pressures since Week 9) to go with 4.5 total sacks. Murphy still has just a 58.7 Pro Football Focus grade, but there is clearly something here to foster moving forward.

He's keeping the same mindset that's helped him improve in Year 3.

"Same deal, next week is the biggest game of the year. That's my mindset," Murphy said on Sunday. "I feel like that's the entire defense's mindset going into next week. Set the mind, attack, stop the run, get after the quarterback — nothing changes. We're not just going to sit back and let whatever happens to us. We're still going to attack, set edges, do what we can to show everyone what Bengals football is."

Sunday marked Murphy's first multi-sack game of his 2025 season.

He knows the team needed to do a better job of limiting explosive plays after another horrifically bad efficiency day for the league's worst yards per play defense. They allowed 7.9 yards per play to a Ravens team that barely had to play offense to win (40 total plays).

Multiple turnovers by the Bengals' offense didn't help things.

"Yes. Limiting the explosives there. They're an explosive team, they've got guys all over at quarterback, O-Line, running back, receivers — you've got to do what you can to limit the explosives," Murphy noted. "I felt like we did a good job against the run and a couple of contains, got pressure on them, but it was just the explosives. I was one of those who gave up one of the explosives. Those are just things that can't happen."

He will try to keep his rising 2025 season rollin this Sunday against the Dolphins at 1 p.m. ET in Miami.

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Russ Heltman
RUSSELL HELTMAN

Russ Heltman is a contributor for AllBearcats and AllBengals. He is the morning host and producer for 89.3 WMKV in Cincinnati, OH.  Russ can be found on Twitter: @RussHeltman11 or you can reach him by email at Heltmandm@yahoo.com.

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