The Washington Commanders are playing in primetime in Week 3 as they travel to take on the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium. Here are five keys to the matchup.

1. Score in the red zone.

The Washington Commanders had six trips into the red zone against the Giants, getting inside the 10-yard line on four of those possessions, but had to settle for field goals in a 21-18 win. The effort from Austin Seibert broke a franchise record and was enough to win against a struggling Giants team, but that won't be the case against Joe Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.

While the Commanders got an overall strong performance from the offense, which put up 425 yards and 22 first downs, things slowed to a halt in scoring position. Most of this was a credit to false starts, which occurred four times inside the red zone, but the offense also generally struggled to move the ball inside the 20-yard line. The unit had gained just 27 yards on plays in that area of the field.

What was a three-point, gutsy win could have easily been a 41-18 blowout, and based on how Jayden Daniels has continued to mature in the offense, the Commanders are least capable of hitting that. They might need to because of how the defense is struggling to start the season. Washington has allowed at least a field goal on 10 of 16 possessions from the opposing offense, and while the Bengals are currently 21st in points per game, they do have the potential to produce explosive plays at any moment.

Finishing is a larger problem for the Commanders, but they must find a way of doing so on offense to keep up with the Bengals.

2. Keep Joe Burrow under pressure.

Like the rest of the Bengals' offense, Burrow's performance through two games can be misleading. He's around the middle of the league in passing yards (422) with a 15th-ranked QBR (56.5). Burrow's health prevented him from putting up gaudy numbers in 2023, but he's still the quarterback who led the league in completion rate in 2021 and had back-to-back 4,000-yard seasons. So, don't get it twisted; Burrow is going to be a problem for Commanders on Monday.

Although the Bengals have done a better job of protecting Burrow on the offensive line, he is still under more pressure than the team would like, as he has been sacked six times. Five of those sacks have come on third down, so if the Commanders can get a spark from their pass-rush, the opportunity to get Burrow off the field will be there.

However, the Commanders are still searching for that level of production. Their pass-rushers certainly done a good job of winning their matchups, as their collective pass-rush win rate of 45% ranks 11th in the NFL, but they're currently tied for last with just two sacks. Like the offense, finishing plays has been a problem for the unit, which is partly due to the players still developing chemistry together.

Getting to Burrow won't be easy, as their offensive line ranks fifth in pass-block win rate, but if the Commanders can at least speed up his process, it could be enough to keep the Cincinnati offense sputtering to start the year.

3. Run the ball.

The Commanders are still building their identity on offense, but it looks like running the ball is an integral part of their plans.

Thanks to the 133 yards from Brian Robinson Jr. that fueled a 215-yard day on the ground, the Commanders now have one of the most productive ground attacks in the NFL. They're currently fifth with 176.5 yards per game and tied for sixth with 5.4 yards per carry. Nearly 48% of their first downs have come from running the ball, which also ranks sixth in the league.

Things at least seem set up for the Commanders to have another big day against the Bengals, who do have a top 15 defense led by play-caller Lou Anarumo but have struggled against the run, allowing a seventh-worst 159.5 yards per game. They have been marred by injuries in the interior with B.J. Hill, Sheldon Rankin and Kris Jenkins all on the injury report, and teams like the Patriots, who put up 170 rushing yards on 39 attempts have been able to capitalize on that.

It's important to note that both the Chiefs and Patriots ran the ball at least 30 times in their wins over the Bengals, so it's not like the Commanders should expect big gashes every time they have a rushing attempt. There will be moments when the Bengals will overcommit to defending the ground game and succeed at it. So, the Commanders will need to keep feeding Brian Robinson Jr. and Austin Ekeler, because eventually, they will break free into the second level.

4. Contain Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.

Part of the reason why the Bengals have struggled comes from their issues at wide receiver. Tee Higgins hasn't played yet because of injury, and Chase is still getting up to speed after sitting out of training camp.

Chase will eventually get back to his old self, and Higgins is trending towards playing on Monday, giving the Commanders' secondary not one, but two former first-rounders to deal with.

Giving up chunks of yardage in the passing game is a lingering problem for the Commanders' defensive backs. Mike Evans and Chris Godwin accounted for 144 yards and three touchdowns in Week 1, and Malik Nabers was targeted 18 times for 127 yards and a score. Some of these explosive plays stem from struggles with communication, which head coach Dan Quinn said has gotten better each week. Quinn followed that up by saying that there is still room for improvement in that area.

Chase and Higgins will have their moments, but the Commanders can limit those opportunities. There were moments when that was accomplished against the Giants, as Benjamin St-Juste swatted the ball away from Nabers in the fourth quarter and kept up with the first-round pick on another incompletion. The Commanders will need more of that on Monday, and if they're able to accomplish that, the pass-rush and secondary could work in tandem in a way that hasn't consistently occurred thus far this season.

5. Keep playing turnover-free football.

The Commanders are one of just four teams that haven't scored a passing touchdown yet, but they're also one of only two teams that haven't committed a turnover through two weeks. The latter will need to continue to give Washington its best chance against the Bengals.

Some of this will depend on whether Jayden Daniels can continue to protect the football. Daniels has made mostly smart decisions with the ball, keeping it out of harm's way while completing 75.5% of his attempts. He has the ninth-best passer rating in the NFL and second best among all first- and second-year quarterbacks, and while most of his passes have been close to the line of scrimmage, he did stretch the field a bit better against the Giants in the second half.

Daniels will face another difficult task against the Bengals, who already have three takeaways this season and are built to give quarterbacks fits in the passing game, as they have given up 128.5 yards per game through the air. It's another reason for the Commanders to run the ball with Robinson, who has only lost two fumbles in his career.

It's inevitable that the Commanders will eventually commit a turnover this season, and if that does happen against the Bengals, it will be important that they don't let that mistake lead to more. It simply cannot afford to give the Bengals more scoring opportunities.