The biggest reason we predicted a two-game winning streak before the bye for the Cincinnati Bengals was the ever-increasing health of quarterback Joe Burrow.
Entering Week 8 against the San Francisco 49ers after the break, there’s no reason to think Burrow isn’t at the healthiest he’s been all year.
Over his last two games, Burrow displayed more mobility than he had been able to all season, ultimately throwing for five touchdowns and two interceptions combined in the wins. Fast forward to this week, the team has gone as far as adding under-center looks to the offense, a sign he’s comfortable with longer dropbacks.
And the positives for the Bengals don’t stop there.
That bye week allowed other injured players such as Tee Higgins, Orlando Brown Jr. and Chidobe Awuzie to get right.
And the opponent is a 49ers team that has gone from Super Bowl favorite to losers of two in a row. Quarterback Brock Purdy had been in concussion protocol from Wednesday to Saturday, star wideout Deebo Samuel is out with an injury and star offensive tackle Trent Williams is merely questionable for the game.
That doesn’t mean the 49ers aren’t dangerous, especially at home, of course. Purdy takes good care of the football with 11 touchdowns and just three interceptions. Christian McCaffrey averages 4.8 yards per carry and has scored eight times as a runner already. Brandon Aiyuk is quietly having a stellar season with 10 catches of 20-plus yards while averaging 17 yards per catch and tight end George Kittle is one of the best in the game. Everyone knows Nick Bosa provides a serious pass-rush, too.
But it’s hard to ignore the trends here with one team much healthier and on more rest. Keep in mind while the Bengals were on a bye, the 49ers were playing a game late into Monday night and had a short week — and that difference matters on the field.
The biggest x-factor might just be whether Williams plays. Without him, Purdy threw one score and two picks and McCaffrey ran for 45 yards on a 3.0 average in the Monday night loss, with the offense completely falling apart.
In a straight-up matchup of quarterbacks, there’s an obvious winner here. But the Bengals might just be favored in this game if both teams are fully healthy as it is. The 49ers will miss at least one of the best players in the NFL, if not two though, just as the Bengals are starting to figure out the offensive side of things, giving off vibes to that team that won 10 straight last year. This is a get-right game as the Bengals get back over .500.
Prediction: Bengals 27, 49ers 20
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