We Need a Better Record Against the AFC North

[*ochocincos*]

(01-29-2024, 11:36 PM)Fan_in_Kettering Wrote: When a team goes 9-8 but underperforms in division play at 1-5 a problem definitely exists.  Winning just two more division games — or maybe even one more — would have likely placed the Bengals in the AFC playoffs.

Also — and let’s be brutally honest — the Bengals should rightly have gone 0-6 in the division.  In Week 18 Cleveland started their fifth string practice squad’s little brothers to save their starters for the playoffs.

In 2021 and 2022, the years the Bengals went to the AFC Championship, the team featured winning records against division opponents on the way to winning the AFC North and thereby securing at least one home playoff game.  I am of the firm belief that Cincinnati needs to refocus effort on winning the AFC North and possibly securing a higher seed in the playoffs.

Success in the AFC North requires a shutdown defense, a robust running game, and a solid offensive line.  That’s where to focus in the offseason.

Bengals gonna need to change up some of their scheme if they're gonna primarily focus on beating the heavy-run teams in the AFC North.
But they changed their approach to beating the likes BUF and KC.
And if the playoffs were any indication, the AFC North run-heavy teams didn't really do that well after all.

I prefer being able to beat the Chiefs and Bills, as long as the Bengals can find their way back into the postseason.
Heck, they almost made it with Burrow being either out or largely hobbled for all but 5 games of the season.