The Cincinnati Bengals suffered their third straight 0-2 start, losing their week 2 game against the Superbowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in controversial fashion 26-25. Now you gotta ask while they are getting ready for their MNF game against the Washington Commanders is, should the fans be Panicking about the start of the season? For me, it is a hard no.
Is this 0-2 start comparable to previous seasons? No, I do not think so for several reasons. In previous starts we had a reason to believe we wouldn’t win the next following weeks from two key factors. Having good momentum, and Joe Burrows being able to play at a high level. I feel like the difference in these two factors will help the team to a better look than what we have seen before.
What Were The Problems Back Then?
Since we have hired Zac Taylor in 2019, the Bengals have had a 0-2 start in 5/6 seasons. So the question is what can we examine from those seasons and compare it to the situation we have now? In 2019 the Bengals would start the year with a close loss to the Seahawks, but would get punched back to reality as they were blown out in their home opener by the 49ers 41-17.
In 2020, Burrow’s rookie season would start sour as a potential game-tying field goal would be missed to lose to the Chargers 13-16.They would have a short week after for TNF against the Browns, where they were pushed around all day to lose the game 30-35 with a garbage time touchdown in the end. In 2022 and 2023 they had similar stories, as Burrow suffered an injury in the off-season (a ruptured appendix in 2022 and a calf strain in 2023) made the offense look conservative and one-dimensional, as they would lose to the Steelers in Cowboys in close nail biters.
What’s The Difference?
The first major difference is that the team has been competing in the games. After shockingly losing to the Patriots, the Bengals would bounce back, as they went to Arrowhead Stadium against the Superbowl winning Chiefs, and take them till the last play with some controversy for the Chiefs to beat them. We also saw the improvements on both sides of the play. We saw deep balls were tried, highlight plays were made on both sides of the ball, and we saw play calling improve with more 12-personnel, single back, motion, and play action.
The other major factor to look at is Burrow’s health. In 2022 and 2023 we were looking to the rest of the season with a question, as in 2022 we didn’t know when Burrow would be fine, and were hoping it’d be good enough to squeeze a few wins before he’s fully healthy. During 2023, we didn’t even know if Burrow would have been healthy enough to play MNF against the Rams. This was from him being a game-time decision that game.
Now you have a healthy Joe Burrow getting key players back like Tee Higgins, Amarius Mims, and Kris Jenkins, coming soon. You also have Myles Murphy and McKinnley Jackson are projected to return in week 5. Overall, you shouldn’t worry that this team is one of the best in the AFC, much less the NFL.
