If the Cincinnati Bengals had been able to hang on against the Houston Texans on Sunday, they could have had a significant impact on the AFC North. Sadly, on the Texans’ last drive of the game, they were unable to stop C.J. Stroud, and Houston went on to kick the game-winning field goal to avoid overtime.
A few minutes later, the Cleveland Browns improved to 6-3 while the Baltimore Ravens dropped to 7-3 after blowing a double-digit point lead. In addition, the Pittsburgh Steelers emerged victorious in their encounter with the Green Bay Packers, improving to 6-3 overall.
This indicates that, despite their valiant efforts to secure a spot in the AFC North, the Bengals are once again alone in the basement.
The Bengals could very well be eliminated from the AFC North race competition with a loss to Baltimore on Thursday night, but stranger things have happened. With a 10-7 record in 2021, they won the AFC North. For the majority of 2022, they trailed the Ravens in the division until securing their place with a 12-4 record.
Regretfully, this year’s opposition in the division is more formidable. In spite of having less than stellar offenses, the Browns and Steelers are still able to win games.
Regretfully, this year’s opposition in the division is more formidable. In spite of having less than stellar offenses, the Browns and Steelers are still able to win games. Unless there are ties, two AFC North teams will add losses to their records this weekend while two others will add much-needed victories in the best football division. Those two teams play in Week 11, right before the Bengals and Ravens square off.
Ranking every starting quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals since 2000; Ranking every notable quarterback for the Bengals since 1990; Cincinnati Bengals: All-time passing leaders in franchise historyWeek 10 AFC Playoff Picture: All of the AFC North, including the Bengals, are in the postseason.
Week 10 AFC Playoff Picture: All of the AFC North, including the Bengals, are in the postseason.
After completing Week 9, the Cincinnati Bengals look forward to continuing their winning ways in Week 10 in order to maintain their playoff position. When the Bengals won against the Buffalo Bills last week, the two teams switched places, with the Stripes now on the outside looking in. This meant that the Bengals would now advance to the postseason.
Oddly enough, the entire AFC North would agree. After taking a look at the AFC’s current playoff projections, let’s talk more about that.
In Week 11, those two teams square off against the Bengals and Ravens.
Standings for the AFC North after Week 10
Ravens of Baltimore (7-3)
Cleveland Browns (6-3) versus Pittsburgh Steelers (6-3)
Bengals of Cincinnati (5-4)
The Bengals’ 5-4 record would have at least tied them for second place in any other division, but not in the fiercely competitive AFC North. The Bengals have a chance to narrow the gap with their divisional rival, the Ravens, this Thursday night. However, if they had defeated the Texans, they would have been able to level the score with them.
AFC playoff standings as of Week 10
Chiefs of Kansas City (7-2)
Ravens of Baltimore (7-2)
Jaguars of Jacksonville (6-2)
Dolphins of Miami (6-3)
Steelers of Pittsburgh (5-3)
Browns of Cleveland (5-3)
Bengals of Cincinnati (5-3)
Buffalo Bills (5-4), Houston Texans (4-4), Los Angeles Chargers (4-4) and New York Jets (4-4) are the teams in the hunt.
The entire AFC North would be in the playoff picture if the season ended right now. This is now feasible with the third wild card spot, and the AFC North is currently stomping the postseason, demonstrating the intense competition in this division.
The Bengals, who returned to the postseason this week, would play the Ravens in the wild card round in Baltimore. This would be a rematch of the Bengals’ narrow victory over the Ravens in Cincinnati during the wild card round last year. In the meantime, the Dolphins would welcome the Steelers, and the Jaguars would host the Browns.
The Bills would not be invited to the dance right now, even though it’s difficult to imagine them missing out on the playoffs. This weekend, the Texans visit Cincinnati, and a victory would increase their chances of making the playoffs. Thanks to the Chargers’ victory over the Jets on Monday, the Bengals were able to occupy the seventh spot.
We’ll continue to see shake-ups in the playoff picture and it’s extremely doubtful that the entire AFC North will still be playoff-bound when the final whistle blows for the 2023 regular season. Crazier things have happened though and this truly is a crazy NFL season.
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