For most of this NFL season, we’ve wondered whether the Cincinnati Bengals still possessed the chops to compete for a Super Bowl. Intermittent injuries to Joe Burrow and Tee Higgins played the biggest role — how on Earth could the Bengals compete without their face of the franchise and second-best playmaker?
On Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers, a healthy Burrow and Co. showed they are still a force to be reckoned with. After taking two weeks to rest his formerly ailing calf, Burrow dismantled the San Francisco defense in a 31-17 win to the tune of a 28-of-32, 283-yard, three-touchdown performance. If the 49ers had bothered or flummoxed Burrow at all, the elite quarterback didn’t show any signs.
This development now raises an important question.
Where do we factor the Bengals in? Mind you, we’re not just talking about the AFC North race. Because if Burrow is finally healthy, this impressive Bengals squad is more than capable of another deep playoff run. Everything from Cincinnati’s division to an AFC conference title and Super Bowl is within reach now. It’s hard to argue otherwise when you see the NFL’s other heavyweights messing around every single week.
For example, the Kansas City Chiefs might have too many issues at receiver. Meanwhile, the next time these Miami Dolphins beat a winning opponent will be the first. We’d like to trust the Baltimore Ravens more, but we still need to see more from the Todd Monken offense. Lest we forget, there are also the Philadelphia Eagles, who are seemingly obsessed with playing with their food — no matter who they square off against.
Overall, no one seems capable of consistently playing well.
The Bengals parlayed red-hot second halves into back-to-back AFC title game appearances in each of the last two years. History sure seems like it’s about to repeat itself. The NFL’s one-percent better be on high alert.
Naturally, the Bengals and a healthy Burrow are heavily featured in For The Win‘s Week 9 NFL power rankings.