Tag: Bengals predictions

Final score predictions for Steelers vs. Bengals in Week 12

A final prediction for Steelers vs. Bengals in Week 12.

The Cincinnati Bengals start the Jake Browning era against a Pittsburgh Steelers team at a crossroads, too.

Those Steelers are 6-4 despite a minus-29 point differential on the season and enter this one after firing offensive coordinator Matt Canada. Not only that, Steelers wide receiver Diontae Johnson and safety Minkah Fitzpatrick had a heated exchange after a loss last week, hinting at possible issues there.

Issues for Mike Tomlin’s team or not, the Bengals sit below them in the AFC North at 5-5 and face even bigger problems. The hurdle? Going from a borderline MVP contender Joe Burrow to Jake Browning, who has 15 attempts as a pro.

The Bengals have attempted to paint it as the full offensive approach doesn’t change under the direction of Browning. And while he’s got a better cast of weapons (sans Tee Higgins) than most backups would ever enjoy, it’s a tall order to successfully execute behind an up-and-down line against the T.J. Watt-led Steelers.

And a potentially struggling offense doesn’t help a defense that hasn’t looked right all year. That unit finally gets Sam Hubbard back up front, but the young secondary trying to adjust after big roster turnover could struggle against Pittsburgh’s strong cast of weapons.

Still, this feels like one of the biggest coin-flips of the season. Each team wants to rally and reset the narrative for the rest of the year. The Steelers want to prove, behind a surge after a rare in-season coaching move, that they can be a playoff threat. The Bengals want to show they can shock as an underdog and that the rest of the season really isn’t just about development.

Notably, this one goes down in Cincinnati and there’s a glimmer of hope in that a low-scoring game could favor the Bengals. While the Steelers have a new play-caller, quarterback Kenny Pickett has thrown just one touchdown since October 1.

To his credit, Browning came in and led scoring drives last week without any prep time. There’s a small chance he can scratch and claw his way into enough production against a Steelers defense that lost to a rookie quarterback last week to keep the Bengals alive.

Prediction: Bengals 17, Steelers 14

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1]

Final score predictions for Bengals vs. Ravens on TNF in Week 11

A final prediction for Bengals vs. Ravens in Week 11.

Thursday night, the Cincinnati Bengals need to do what feels like the near-impossible to avoid falling into a season-altering hole.

There, they enter hostile territory to take on the 7-3 Baltimore Ravens just a few days removed from last Sunday’s loss to the Houston Texans. At stake is not just losing two in a row — it’s falling to 5-5, 0-3 in the AFC North and 1-5 in the AFC.

And the short-week hurdle thrown out by the NFL is readily apparent on the injury report. While star defensive end Trey Hendrickson is surprisingly good to go, we don’t know how effective he can be after suffering what was reported as a hyperextended knee last Sunday. Wideout Tee Higgins and defensive end Sam Hubbard will miss the game.

That’s not to say the Ravens aren’t suffering either. They just lost a heartbreaker to the Browns to ruin a four-game streak of their own and starting offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley is out, while top cornerback Marlon Humphrey is doubtful.

Making it harder to get a read on this matchup is that this is a rematch. Back in Week 2, the Bengals lost 27-24 while Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson both threw a pair of scores. But Burrow’s calf injury greatly limited his mobility and that was when the playbook was severely dialed back before the bye week.

So, while the Bengals figure to be better offensively this time out, keep in mind in Week 2 that it was Higgins who led the team with eight catches for 89 yards and two scores. Baltimore’s defense has been stellar this season, limiting Houston to nine points, Cleveland to three in one of their two matches, Tennessee to 16, Detroit to six and Seattle to three.

If anything, it feels like this one will come down to the defense for the Bengals. Lou Anarumo had the big task on a short week of fixing his unit’s tackling issues, likely stressing bringing down the ball-carrier is more important than trying to get a turnover.

Easier said than done against Jackson, though. The Ravens passer has won seven of eight starts against the Bengals over the course of his career, averaging 79.5 rushing yards per encounter. If he breaks free like that, Baltimore shouldn’t have any problems at home.

Still, Burrow’s offense should produce, as this is his fifth encounter with Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald, who heavily relies on never blitzing and keeping two-deep shells. By now, it’s safe to presume Burrow will be ready for it.

The first quarter is the massive one to watch and it might decide the game outright. Sounds wild, but the Ravens have outscored teams 79-16 in the opening frame this year, while the Bengals have scored 55-34 in that quarter and have scored a touchdown on their last five game-opening drives.

Here’s where it gets interesting — the Ravens have trailed for less than 30 minutes this season, but they’ve lost in overtime, on a late touchdown and a late field goal. If Anarumo’s defense can adapt and Burrow’s offense remains consistent, sprinkle in some serious desperation for the visiting team and this one could come down to Evan McPherson.

Prediction: Bengals 27, Ravens 24

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1]

Final score predictions for Texans vs. Bengals in Week 10

A final prediction for Texans vs. Bengals in Week 10.

Like the games before it, the Cincinnati Bengals winning a fifth straight will mostly hinge on quarterback Joe Burrow.

That fifth straight looks like it will have to come during a trap game against a game Houston Texans team led by breakout rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud, who enters Paycor Stadium having thrown for 470 yards and five touchdowns during a win the week prior.

And while Burrow looks all the way back from his calf injury, he’ll need to carry an offense that won’t have Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase’s playing status will come down to a morning workout.

Still, it’s understandable if Bengals fans feel pretty confident in Burrow anyway. They’ve seen him dice up defenses with the likes of Trenton Irwin in the past. And just last week during that primetime win over the Bills, he peppered eight different targets with at least one catch on his way to 348 yards and two touchdowns. He’s now thrown five scores and no picks over the last two games, wins over the 49ers and Bills.

This can go a step further, too. The Texans rank 24th in passing yards allowed per game and the team’s secondary was a big part of an injury report this week that listed a stunning 23 players. On the final report, eight players were listed as out (including a starting kicker), with a corner and pass-rusher listed as questionable, too.

Of the players listed out for the Texans, top running back Dameon Pierce and top wideout Nico Collins will miss the game, leaving Stroud without key weapons on the road against a Lou Anarumo defense that should throw confusing looks at the rookie.

Which isn’t to say the Texans can’t produce — someone like Dalton Schultz is the blueprint to exploit the usual Bengals struggles against tight ends. But if the Bengals offense jumps out in front and Stroud’s offense has to get predictable to keep pace, it could create problems for the visitors.

Considering the Texans needed nearly 500 yards and five scores from Stroud to beat a 3-5 Tampa Bay team that has lost four in a row, it’s safe to say this is an easier matchup for the Bengals than each of the last two weeks.

That doesn’t mean it isn’t a trap game and the team can’t afford to overlook the Texans while eyeballing next Thursday’s showdown with the Ravens. But it’s super winnable if they keep playing as they have over this four-game streak.

Prediction: Bengals 30, Texans 20

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1]

Bengals news: Big injury updates, toughest games left, NFL Week 10 picks

The latest Bengals news items and notes to know.

Cincinnati Bengals news fired off at a rapid pace this week, mostly around injury updates for names like Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and even Sam Hubbard.

As it turns out, Higgins and Hubbard are two of the biggest names set to miss the game against the Houston Texans, while Chase is a 50-50 shot after making nice progress from his back injury.

But that’s hardly all as the weekend arrives. We’ve also got a ranking of the toughest games left on the schedule for the Bengals and how some experts are picking the Week 10 game.

Here’s a look at the must-know Bengals news, notes and quotes for November 11.

Bengals’ 9 remaining games, ranked from easiest to toughest

The easiest to toughest games left on the schedule for the Bengals, ranked.

It is commonly suggested that the Cincinnati Bengals have one of the NFL’s hardest remaining schedules with nine games left in the season.

And while that’s true, some games are much harder than others.

Across the remaining nine games, the Bengals play four AFC North opponents and just one non-conference opponent outright. They appear on primetime at least two more times, though two games remain TBD on details and flex scheduling could move others.

Either way, at the season’s halfway point, now is a good time to step back and look at the broader schedule and rank Cincinnati’s remaining games from easiest to hardest.

Final score predictions for Bills vs. Bengals in Week 9

A final prediction for Bills vs. Bengals in Week 9.

The three-game winning streak for the Cincinnati Bengals wasn’t the hardest to predict so far because of one factor.

Joe Burrow.

And it sure feels like a fourth straight is on the docket.

When the Bengals host the Buffalo Bills on the Week 9 edition of “Sunday Night Football,” a national audience will again see a fully healthy Burrow.

Last week, he went into San Francisco and beat a five-win 49ers team 31-17 while going 28-of-32 for 283 yards with three scores and some play-extending and first-down runs, too. That, while leaving roughly 10 points on the board because of a missed field goal and a redzone lost fumble.

Of course, nothing is guaranteed in the NFL and other such typical disclaimers. But that was the closest to the offseason vision we’ve seen the Bengals offense so far — where a healthy Burrow plays behind the best line he’s enjoyed since being drafted and the offense continues to expand.

Another disclaimer, though — the Bills aren’t a slouch. Josh Allen is still massively boom-or-bust, having thrown 17 scores and rushed for five more, yet also sitting on eight interceptions and three fumbles. Even while playing through an injury to his shoulder last week, he managed to throw for two scores, 324 yards and rush for a score in a win.

The Bills also have two guys averaging 4.8 yards per rush or better, one of those being Allen, while the Cincinnati defense is one of the league’s worst — at least statistically — against the run.

Still, it’s hard not to keep coming back to the quarterback comparison. Burrow and Co. have turned the ball over just six times this year for a plus-seven differential, second-best in the league.

And while Allen deals with a shoulder injury that still had him on the injury report last week, he’ll also have to deal with Trey Hendrickson’s pass-rush behind a line that is very young on one side.

We’d be remiss not to mention last year, too. The Bengals fired out of the gates and looked well on the way to a win during the regular season before that game got called off. In the playoffs in Buffalo, that really came to fruition, a 27-10 Bengals win in which Burrow threw for two scores, the offense ran for 172 yards and a score and Allen mustered no touchdown passes on 42 attempts.

The Bengals have simply felt like a bad matchup for the Bills for a few years now, especially with the way Lou Anarumo can put out defenses that give Allen problems. Add on his injury and the fact the Bills are 2-2 over their last four, the wins coming against teams with losing records, and it feels like the Bengals are catching them at a good time — at home, no less.

For this one, it wouldn’t be too much of a shock to see the Bengals pounce on another early lead and really turn the running game loose.

Prediction: Bengals 30, Bills 21

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1]

Final score predictions for Bengals vs. 49ers in Week 8

A final prediction for Bengals vs. 49ers in Week 8.

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

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1]

Predicting Bengals wins and losses for final 11 games at bye week

Game-by-game predictions for the rest of the Bengals schedule at the bye week.

Survival is perhaps the best word to describe the theme of the Cincinnati Bengals‘ season so far.

The team survived to 3-3, enduring Joe Burrow’s calf injury and a brutal opening sequence that included Baltimore and Cleveland.

Now, the team hopes the theme of the second half coming out of the bye is simple — going on a run.

It’s no easy task. Right out of the gates, Burrow and Co. have to face the San Francisco 49ers and then the Buffalo Bills. Houston isn’t a slouch before Baltimore and Pittsburgh and neither are Jacksonville and Indianapolis. Later, they close the season against Pittsburgh, Kansas City and Cleveland.

Let’s take a look at updated projections for each game now that we have seen six games from these 2023 Bengals.