Bengals Defend Jordan Battle Before Dolphins Matchup

Cincinnati Bengals safety Jordan Battle faces scrutiny over his tackling and public comments about Miami Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis ahead of their Week 5 matchup on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, in Miami. Battle has missed five tackles through four games, while Bengals coaches Zac Taylor and Al Golden have defended his performance and emphasized the team's collective responsibility on defense.

Battle's tackling has remained a concern after he recorded 21 missed tackles last season, the third-highest total in the league, according to Sports Illustrated and Yahoo Sports. His latest struggles attracted further attention after Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Brenton Strange converted a third-and-18 situation into a first down last week.

Battle acknowledged that his approach sometimes prevents him from bringing ball carriers down. He attributed the problem to attacking at full speed without adjusting his body position before contact.

"I feel like sometimes I just tend to just go full speed, don't break down, just try to run through a guy," Battle said. "Later on that drive, I did a better job of coming to, gathering and then getting them on the ground.

The safety also drew attention after discussing what he believes is a recognizable pattern in Willis' throwing motion. Battle said the quarterback sometimes taps the ball or removes his hand before releasing a pass, potentially giving defenders a cue to react.

"He has a little slight little tap before every throw, feel like we could use that as a key to break on the ball," Battle said. "He likes to tap the ball before he throws it, or he takes his hand off, and that that gives the read the break.

The remarks prompted criticism from national media members because Battle had publicly discussed a potential tendency before facing Miami. However, the practical value of the observation may depend on the defensive coverage, as defensive backs in man coverage generally focus on the receivers they are assigned to cover rather than watching the quarterback.

Miami head coach Jeff Hafley dismissed the suggestion that the movement represented a significant competitive advantage. Speaking before Friday's practice, he said similar habits are common among quarterbacks and often relate to timing and rhythm.

"I played high school quarterback," Hafley said before practice Friday. "I did the same thing. It never hurt me.

I'm just joking. But I did play high school quarterback, and I probably patted the ball. Being very honest with you, I've studied quarterbacks for over 25 years, and that is not uncommon.

A lot of quarterbacks pat the ball or take their hand off the ball. I mean, there's some I've studied that look up right before they throw the ball. I just I don't think there's anything revolutionary about that.

It's a timing and rhythm thing with a lot of guys, and there's a lot of them that do that.

Hafley said the comments did not reveal a meaningful weakness that Miami needed to address. He contrasted the quarterback's routine with a hypothetical, more consequential revelation about an offensive lineman's stance signaling a running play.

"Any opponent that wants to share our tendencies with us, we'll take any time," Hafley said. "But there's nothing there on that. If there was something big, like he told us every time our left guard was in a three-point stance we were running the ball, I'd be like, all right, we've got to fix that. It's just there's nothing there.

Despite the criticism surrounding the missed tackle against Jacksonville, Bengals head coach Zac Taylor defended Battle's overall tackling ability while acknowledging the specific play needed a better outcome.

"I think there's a lot of great examples of Jordan Battle tackling," Taylor said. "The (third-and-18) one coming out of the post is the one we got to get on the ground. There are a bunch of other examples where he does come out of the post and get people down with some tough tackles on the sidelines.

Defensive coordinator Al Golden also challenged the criticism, arguing that the play should be assessed as a team defensive failure rather than solely an individual mistake. His comments reinforced the coaching staff's position that teammates must provide support when a defender attempts to make a tackle.

"If I'm being completely honest, I don't think the criticism on that one - we've always got to make a tackle; we understand that - but he needs friends on that one," Golden said. "We've got to gang-tackle that.

The Bengals entered the matchup with Battle's five missed tackles through four games as a measurable concern, while his comments about Willis added another storyline to the contest. Cincinnati was scheduled to face Miami at 1 p.m. Eastern time on Sunday.