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The Cincinnati Bengals Path To The Playoffs

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This question could be answered simply with “win football games,” and that’s true; the Bengals will have to turn this next stretch of games into wins, but what is the process in doing that? How can the Cincinnati Bengals put themselves in the best position possible as a team to make a playoff run in one of the tightest and most challenging divisions in football.

The Bengals have one of the toughest schedules coming up through the second half of the season, but that is no excuse because the Steelers, Ravens, and Browns have extremely tough schedules as well. Luckily, the Bengals are already 2-1 within the division, which gives them an upper hand in tiebreakers. But with division games still to play against all three teams, it only goes a long way if they can pull out wins again against these opponents.

This past week, the Bengals defeated the Las Vegas Raiders to improve to 6-4 in a very critical conference matchup. The Raiders, a lot like the Bengals, have been a very inconsistent team this year. Some weeks they look as if they can hang with and beat anybody in the NFL, and other weeks, they look like an average team who isn’t ready to compete yet. Both teams were on two-game skids, which means the motivation from each side was high. Down the course of the year, the Bengals winning this game could play a profound role in how the wild card and playoff race shake out if records remain as close as they are right now.

The Bengals stretch of games to end the season now include

– Pittsburgh Steelers (5-4-1) 

– Los Angeles Chargers (6-4) 

– San Francisco 49ers (5-5)

– at Denver Broncos (5-5)

– Baltimore Ravens (7-3) 

– Kansas City Chiefs (7-4)

– at Cleveland Browns (6-5)

Every team on the Bengals upcoming schedule currently has a .500 or better record and still presents a lot of talent on both sides of the ball.

The Bengals need to get back to some of what they were doing through the first seven weeks. Forget about Week 8 and Week 9. Instead, do the little things, play for one another, wrap up and tackle, make intelligent decisions, stay disciplined, and most importantly, stay level-headed. No win is more significant than the next one.

As a young football team, that will be the biggest key for the team to remember. A big win against a good team or a win against a lousy team results in the same outcome. It puts a W in the win column and helps the team get closer to reaching their goals. And as we’ve seen countless times this year, any team can be beaten on any given day or night regardless of record.

The Bengals have seen it first hand losing to the lowly Jets. The Titans, Bills, Ravens, and other teams have also experienced it. Cincinnati will need to show up each week and put on a stellar performance and find ways to win games even when adversity puts its back up against the wall. Good teams find ways to win. If the Bengals want to be considered a top team in the AFC, they will need to beat other top teams in the AFC.

Currently standing at 6-4 overall and 2nd in the AFC North, the Bengals will be in critical battles with the rest of the division and the rest of the conference through the final eight games. Bengals currently are only one game back to the Baltimore Ravens for 1st in the AFC North. The Ravens still have to play the Browns and the Steelers twice, leaving them with a critical division matchup this week and more in the future as well.

If the Bengals can find a way to get themselves into the postseason, it would be the first time since 2015. The Bengals have not won a playoff game since 1990. Over 30 years. This team has a chance to end that streak but first will have to play the best football of their season to have the opportunity.

The Cincinnati Bengals Have Put The League On Notice

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The Cincinnati Bengals (5-2) defeated the Baltimore Ravens last Sunday 41-17 in a blowout road win to take 1st place in the AFC North and secure the current #1 seed in the AFC. Little to nobody had picked the Bengals to beat the Ravens, but many still knew its importance for Cincinnati to show that they can hang with the top teams in the division and the conference, and the Bengals did more than that.

They proved they are one of the best teams in the conference and the league this season. Joe Burrow threw for 416 yards and three touchdowns. He made throw after throw. Ja’Marr Chase continued his historic rookie campaign, hauling in over 200 receiving yards and added another long touchdown that went for 82 yards in the third quarter. Chase now has 754 receiving yards on the season, which is currently 2nd in the entire NFL behind only Cooper Kupp.

One thing the team has that they haven’t had in the past is consistent play on both sides of the ball. Yes, the offense is firing on all cylinders led by Burrow, Chase, Higgins, Boyd, Mixon, Uzomah, and an offensive line that is exceeding expectations.

But the defense has been one of the best in the NFL this year, specifically the defensive line and the front seven. Against Baltimore, they sacked Lamar Jackson five times which is the most in Jackson’s career. The high spending this off-season is paying off. The additions of Trey Hendrickson, Larry Ogunjobi, D.J. Reader, and players like Vonn Bell and Mike Hilton have added a great deal of success to Lou Anarumo’s defense. Logan Wilson has progressed in year two into one of the best linebackers in football. Chidobe Awuzie has come in and been exactly what the Bengals needed in a CB1 for the secondary that Jessie Bates leads.

There’s a lot of football left, and you don’t want to get ahead of yourself, which Zac Taylor stressed. Just take it week by week and try and beat the opponent in front of you. But the Bengals proved a lot of people wrong this Sunday. They showed the media and the rest of the NFL that this team has arrived, and they aren’t going anywhere. They’re not coming for a wild card spot. They are out to gun for the division and the conference.

The next few weeks will show a lot more about what this team’s about, especially after their bye week in Week 10. The Bengals play the Jets this week and then the Browns the following week. Cincinnati has a great chance to put themselves in the driver’s seat going into their bye week if they can handle their business this week and get another division win against Cleveland. The Cincinnati Bengals are exactly who Bengals nation thought they were and who the media didn’t.

Bengals vs Steelers – Week 4 Recap

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The Cincinnati Bengals got embarrassed by their AFC North rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers, on Monday Night losing by a score of 27-3.

The Bengals defense allowed 2nd year quarterback Mason Rudolph to complete 24 passes on 28 attempts for 229 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Steelers did a great job simplifying the playbook for Rudolph which included a few wildcat plays. Running back Jaylen Samuels took part in those wildcat calls and he was credited with 3 completions for 31 yards as well as having 26 rushing yards on 10 attempts. As putrid as the Bengals looked one positive from the game was their run defense, the Steelers leading rusher, James Connor, had only 42 yards on 10 attempts. Conner was also the Steelers leading receiver with 8 receptions for 83 yards and a receiving touchdown.

The Bengals offense was once again non-existent. Quarterback Andy Dalton had 21 completions on 37 attempts for 171 yards, no touchdowns with 1 interception. In the 2nd quarter down 10-3 the Bengals were driving down the field but when they were deep in Steeler territory Andy Dalton had the ball stripped by Bud Dupree. The offensive line had by far their worst performance of the season allowing Andy Dalton to get sacked 8 times. Running back Joe Mixon had a decent game with 62 yards rushing on 15 attempts and the Bengals leading receiver was Auden Tate who had 4 receptions for 50 yards.

The Bengals come back home on Sunday, October 6th to play the 0-3-1 Arizona Cardinals.

Mindset Is Key For Bengals To Knock Out The Steelers On Monday Night

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The Bengals (0-3) play against their first AFC North opponent of the 2019 season this coming Monday night in prime time when they take on the 0-3 Steelers in Pittsburgh.

The Steelers have been the Bengals most hated nemesis over the past 15-20 years as most matchups during that span have been bloodbaths with the Steelers coming out on the winning end in most cases. This year both teams face each other still looking for their first win after three games but everyone in the media still seem to be picking the Steelers to win despite not having quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. It all makes sense given that the Steelers are the more successful and more talked about franchise with 6 Super Bowl championships. They also boast an all-time record of 64-35 against the Bengals and a 24-7 win-loss advantage since 2004. ESPN’s panel of 10 NFL experts are leaning towards the Steelers in this next matchup as 8 out of 10 are predicting the Steelers to win on Monday night.

Over the years Bengals fans have seen Cincinnati go toe-to-toe with Pittsburgh but they have also witnessed the Bengals flounder in most of those games due to a lack of mental toughness or lack of composure in response to dirty play from the team in yellow and black. In 2018 the Bengals were within a score of beating the Steelers in both matchups but couldn’t finish them.

This season the Bengals have a new head coach and coaching staff and we’ve all seen the “New Dey” marketing slogan around the team. While there have been many refreshing aspects of this new regime of coaches leading the team it has not translated to wins on the field yet. One way to show that it is truly a “New Dey” would be for the Bengals to go into Pittsburgh in a prime time game and win on the road, even against a bad Steelers team without their starting quarterback.

In my mind the key to coming out with a win is for the Bengals to have the right mindset heading into the game. Yes, emotions will run high, there will be nerves, there may even be some dirty play or cheap shots during the game. But with the majority of expectations from the media, and those outside of this Bengals team, being that the Steelers will come out with a win, the Bengals should come into it thinking: “we’ve got nothing to lose”. When one has this kind of mindset they often perform looser and with more confidence. I believe head coach Zac Taylor has the team believing in each other and holding themselves accountable for the areas where they have struggled so far this season. If the Bengals can keep believing in each other, holding each other accountable, learning from past mistakes and combine all of that with a “we’ve got nothing to lose” mindset, then I think they will play well enough to win on Monday night in Pittsburgh. If the Bengals come into the game feeling that the weight of the world is on them, letting their emotions get the best of them and putting too much pressure on themselves, then simply put, they will not win this game.

The Bengals have the talent to beat the Steelers. The coaches seem to have the players buying in. But the talent and belief in each other has yet to fully translate the way they want during games. It is also yet to be seen if we will see the same issues that have plagued past Bengals teams when they play the Pittsburgh Steelers under this new coaching staff. In watching this game on Monday night my focus will be on these 3 things that are all by-products of having the right mindset:

  • 1) how loose and confident players appear (do they appear to be playing tight or afraid of making a mistake)
  • 2) how they respond to adversity when they give up a big play or make a mistake (do they appear to be fighting back in a good way)
  • 3) how they respond to dirty plays or cheap shots by the Steelers (are they taking cheap shots back or getting called for stupid penalties, are the Steelers in their head)

Cincinnati Bengals Midseason Check-In: Awards and Outlook

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Welp, we’re halfway through the 2018 season – and for Cincy fans, things ain’t looking too bad.

The team stands at 5-3, including a win against AFC North foe Baltimore. That’s the best start since going 8-0 in 2015 (which feels like a helluva lot longer than three years ago). They are 3-0 against the teams with whom they are in wild-card contention (Ravens, Dolphins and Colts). Five remaining games are against teams with losing records.

If the receiving corps can hold together until A.J. Green gets back from a foot injury, and the offensive line continues to gel, and Vontaze Burfict quits playing like he’s trying out for the Cleveland Browns, a postseason trip could very well be in the cards.

By the way … some of those players we just mentioned, they deserve mid-season mentions for their accomplishments. Or lack thereof.

Cincinnati Bengals Mid-season Awards

MVP – Andy Dalton: Halfway through the year, Dalton has thrown for 2,102 yards and 17 touchdowns. The latter of those is tied for eighth in the NFL with Tom Brady and Ryan Fitzpatrick. We’re not saying we’d take him over Tom Brady at this point … wait, yes we are.

Surprise player – Trey Hopkins. Offensive guard Trey Hopkins had to show hustle to move up from the practice squad in late 2016. He had to show it even more to earn 12 starts in 2017. Through the first half of this year, he has shown us – and all Cincinnati Bengals fans – that he’s the real deal. Didn’t see that coming.

Rookie MVP – Jessie Bates. Now this is the way to make a first impression. Rookie free safety JB has racked up 60 tackles this year, defended four passes, picked off three others, and scored a touchdown. The last time a Bates was this scary, he was stabbing Janet Leigh in the shower (kids, ask your parents).

Most improved player – Tyler Boyd. Boyd has produced three 100-yard games this year and almost got a fourth against the Ravens in Week Two. His five TDs this year are already more than his first two seasons combined. With 620 receiving yards so far, Boyd is easily on pace to break the 1,000-yard mark in 2018. Now if we can only get John Ross to do that …

Most disappointed in – Vontaze Burfict. Vontaze browned the bed by getting suspended for the first four games of the year for using PEDs. He’s only tallied 17 tackles so far and the Cincinnati Bengals’ defense has fed off that, which puts them on par with the worst Ds in the league. They are 30th in total yards allowed, 25th in rushing yards allowed, and 19th in sacks. Granted, they are tied for sixth with 10 interceptions, so we’ll throw ’em a bone there.