Breaking down the Cincinnati Bengals’ path to the NFL Playoffs

“Hope shouldn’t be a plan.”

I hear individuals use that phrase loads when speaking concerning the Bengals, and it all the time confuses me. In spite of everything, as followers, the one plans we make are the place to look at the sport and what’s on the menu. Hope is all we now have.

By way of the precise staff, I’d say “perception” is a greater phrase.

Perception is likely one of the most vital issues they will have. This isn’t the Bengals staff of a 12 months in the past. They’re more durable, bodily and mentally.

This staff didn’t flinch when Joe Burrow went down. They didn’t stop when Jake Browning threw three interceptions. They aren’t going to hold it up as a result of QB1 went on IR.

They are going to maintain combating, and if God-willing, Burrow returns, they might nonetheless be able to compete for a championship. That is largely as a result of the Bengals did what that they had by no means completed underneath Zac Taylor and began the season 2-0.

That provides me hope, and so long as the staff nonetheless believes, they’ve bought an opportunity.

If Burrow is out for 3 months, that would go away 4 weeks left within the season. In the event that they nonetheless have a optimistic document when quantity 9 returns to the sphere, they’ll nonetheless be in it, and since they’ve a two-game buffer, they’ve bought an actual shot at this.

Burrow’s potential 3-month absence is a 12-week interval during which they play 11 video games.

Let’s break it down into thirds.

Over the following 4 weeks, the Bengals are on the highway towards the Vikings, Broncos, and Packers, and have the Lions at dwelling. This was all the time going to be a troublesome stretch.

Going into the season, I used to be considering they’d go 2-2 in these 4 video games, and I nonetheless consider they will do it.

They begin with the Vikings (September twenty first). They haven’t been the staff I used to be anticipating them to be, and now they are going to be with out their beginning quarterback. Including to this recreation’s winnability is the truth that it comes simply earlier than the Vikings go full Clark W. Griswald by taking a two-week European trip with video games in Eire and London. Minnesota could not have its head within the recreation on Sunday, creating the chance for a highway win for Cincy.

The next week, the Bengals journey to Denver for a matchup on Monday Evening Soccer (September twenty ninth). The Broncos have a superb protection that might be powerful to beat at Mile Excessive, however they did simply lose to the Colts, so who is aware of?

The Lions (October fifth) at house is a must-win. They’ve some expertise, however they’ve two new coordinators, and the shine is off these silver helmets. With this stretch of laborious highway video games, the Bengals want to tug this one off at dwelling.

After that, they go to Inexperienced Bay (October twelfth), and that squad is rolling proper now. The Packers might be an enormous take a look at for the Bengals’ protection, and they are going to be laborious to beat on the frozen tundra of Lambeau Area.

I feel it’s actually vital that they go 2-2 on this stretch to take care of that perception. I additionally suppose it is rather doable. Detroit and Inexperienced Bay will actually take a look at Al Golden’s younger protection, they usually have to be prepared.

The earlier 4 weeks have been certain to be powerful with or with out Burrow, however the 4 weeks after that could possibly be easy crusing. They’ve three dwelling video games main them into the bye week. All three of these video games are very winnable.

The Steelers are the stiffest competitors they may face, however once more, it’s at dwelling (October sixteenth). Not solely that, however it’s a dwelling Thursday evening recreation with the Steelers touring on a brief week. They don’t have Ben Roethlisberger, who, anytime he will get inside an hour of Oxford, thinks he’s again in his faculty days and unloads some MACtion on us. It is a winnable recreation.

After that, they host the Jets (October twenty sixth) and the Bears (November 2nd), two groups which have gained a mixed zero video games to this point in 2025.

It is a stretch the place they might simply go 3-0, however ought to at the very least go 2-1, plus have a bye week main into…

The Bengals have to at the very least cut up with the Steelers. I don’t care if the win comes at dwelling on Thursday evening or on the highway after the bye week (November sixteenth), however they should get a win.

The Patriots (November twenty third) have some expertise, however additionally they have some holes. And let’s not neglect this employees has completed fairly effectively towards Mike Vrabel previously. This might be a pivotal recreation. I feel it’s seemingly that the Bengals come into this recreation with six or seven wins. With three powerful video games in 18 days proper after it, they should put this dwelling recreation within the win column.

Subsequent is a highway recreation in Baltimore on a brief week. Beating the Ravens on Thanksgiving (November twenty seventh) is a tall order. It could be unbelievable, but it surely appears unlikely with out Burrow.

The one benefit to having a brief week is the lengthy week that follows. The Payments (December seventh) are one of many league’s greatest groups, however the Bengals have had their quantity previously. With the additional time to arrange, perhaps, simply perhaps, they might pull off an upset on the highway.

If the Bengals can come out of a three-month stretch with out Joe Burrow with a successful document, take into consideration how assured and harmful that group might be.

And it’s doable. In the event that they win two video games in every of these three stretches, they are going to be 8-5 (6-5 with out Burrow as a starter) and in an excellent place to make a playoff run. Even at 7-6, they might have a good shot.

The primary recreation after Burrow’s proposed return can be the Ravens at dwelling (December 14th). That may be a powerful draw for a comeback, however give me a wholesome Joe Burrow, and I like these odds.

After that, it’s a cakewalk. They journey to Miami (December twenty first), then host Arizona (December twenty seventh/twenty eighth) and Cleveland (December third/4th). These are three video games they need to win.

Successful these three video games would put them at 11 wins, which was adequate for a fifth seed final season.

With their quarterback again, a younger protection that’s cooking, and the swagger of a staff that gained all of these video games with a backup quarterback, I’ll take the Bengals in a highway playoff recreation towards the AFC South Champion.