Bengals Are One Game Short

The Bengals did end up losing in the Super Bowl, but they should not hang their heads because no one expected them to have the season they had.

According to Cincinnati.com, the Bengals were expected to go 6-11 and not make the playoffs. As one can see, this team was not seen as a Super Bowl team and not even a playoff team. 

One of these players that helped them get so far was Ja’Marr Chase, but people didn’t even think the team should have picked him in the draft.

According to https://stripehype.com/, “Chase is probably going to be a tremendous wide receiver in the NFL but with Burrow’s injury coming as a result of the poor o-line play, it’s hard to defend Cincinnati not taking Sewell.”

This shows fans and analysts didn’t even think the Bengals should have picked him, but this ended up being a very smart choice, with Ja’Marr Chase winning Offensive Rookie of the Year.

The biggest part of Cincinnati’s success was Joe Burrow. He was their quarterback and had an amazing year. NFL.com reports that Burrow had 4611 yards and 34 touchdowns with only 14 interceptions, which is very good. He also had the worse protection in the league, getting sacked more than any other quarterback in the NFL, with 51 times.

Minor changes during the season likely would have led to a completely different, less fortuitous outcome, but that is what makes their story this season so cool. In the end, the thing that let them down all season let them down when they needed it most: their offensive line.

But this team is young and has more to come; they just need a few more pieces, and they should be right back.