The 4-7 Cincinnati Bengals have had a rough season in 2024, with the offense not quite being able to paper over the team’s defensive vulnerabilities. The Bengals are 1-3 in their last four and are coming off two disappointing losses to the Ravens and Chargers respectively. While these are good teams, Cincinnati fancied their chances and to lose them both was a blow.
However, they are not quite done just yet and their fixtures ahead suggest they do still have a shot at the postseason, but Cincinnati needs to win out to be sure. That said, The road ahead doesn’t get easier immediately, with the 8-3 Steelers coming to town in Week 13, but after that, you can envision a situation where Cincinnati goes on a run. Let’s predict the Bengals’ remaining schedule:
Predicting the Cincinnati Bengals’ remaining fixtures
Week 13 vs. Steelers (W: 5-7)
This is a tough one to predict as after dominating the Steelers in 2021 the gap between these two teams has been bridged. Pittsburgh has a superior defense to Cincinnati and has improved their offense in 2024. This could be a tense game with both offenses being able to keep it close, and it could come down to the wire.
It feels likely that the Bengals will split their two games against Pittsburgh, and given the home advantage, this might be the win. You can foresee Cincinnati coming out on top here but it could be close.
Week 14 @ Cowboys (W: 6-7)
The Dallas Cowboys are having a very underwhelming campaign, but are starting to piece together wins, albeit against their NFC East rivals, the Commanders and Giants. At 5-7 the Cowboys still fancy a shot at the postseason, and will be fresh off a bye week come Week 14.
This could be a very strange game, but if the Bengals offense can unlock the Cowboys D, Dallas will not be able to keep up and while this is the kind of game Cincinnati could drop, the odds are good they will come away with the win.
Week 15: @ Titans (W: 7-7)
The Tennessee Titans are in rebuild mode in 2024 and sit at 3-8, third in the AFC South. While they are capable of upsetting teams that look past them, it’s hard to predict them beating Cincinnati, even if they are at home, as they are 1-4 at Nissan Stadium in 2024.
Week 16: vs. Browns (W: 8-7)
The Bengals are 4-6 against Cleveland in their last 10 games. While the Browns are in a worse position than Cincinnati in 2024, they are upsetting their AFC North rivals, having taken down the Steelers and Ravens this season.
The Bengals managed to come out on top by a 21-14 score in Cleveland, and they seem a solid bet to win at home too. While anything can happen in rivalry games, you’d expect Cincinnati to have enough to get the W here.
Week 17: vs. Broncos (L: 8-8)
This is where it gets tougher for Cincinnati, as while anyone can beat anyone on any given Sunday, the Broncos are a much-improved side in 2024 and Bo Nix is getting more XP every game.
Denver’s defense is very strong, and their offense has been putting up points too, with 38 and 29 against the Falcons and Raiders respectively. This feels like one where the Bengals D could be a problem and a turnover on offense could be hugely costly.
Week 18: @ Steelers (L: 8-9)
It seems likely that the Bengals will split their two games against Pittsburgh and this could be the loss. Given the Steelers will likely be aiming for as good a finish as possible for playoff seeding, this feels like a game Cincinnati will lose.
Overall, we can see the Bengals finishing with an 8-9 record, falling short in the last two weeks and missing the postseason for the second year in a row. There will then be some serious conversations in the offseason and it seems likely the team will focus on defense in the 2025 draft.