The Cincinnati Bengals face a lot of issues heading into the 2025 NFL season. Sure, they have a lot to be excited about with quarterback Joe Burrow, wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins and even running back Chase Brown.
But, their defense was ranked 25th in the NFL last season in both yards and points allowed. And, the best player on that defense is finally at training camp, but he’s still underpaid and unhappy.
After failing to make the playoffs last year with a 9-8 record, there isn’t a lot to make fans think their Bengals could make a serious push this year.
Or this there?
A pair of recent NFL power rankings actually have the Bengals amongst the top 10 teams in the NFL right now, believe it or not. To be honest, if I had to guess, I’d probably think the Bengals were roughly middle of the pack at this point, with good cases to be made for them to go in either direction. But, I might be in the minority.
Fox Sports ranks the Cincinnati Bengals 8th in the NFL
Ralph Vacchiano of Fox Sports recently put together his mid-training camp rankings of all 32 teams. Why? Because it’s late July and we’re all clamoring to ingest as much NFL information as we can.
It was a bit shocking that to see the Bengals as his No. 8 team, but he makes a good – if optimistic – case for Cincy to be a top team.
“If they could somehow get through the first month unscathed, they’d be one of the Super Bowl favorites,” Vacchiano writes. “But that might be a big ask for the notoriously slow starters, especially since they are already making things difficult for themselves. Defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who had 17.5 sacks last year, is engaged in a sometimes ugly contract holdout. Edge rusher Shemar Stewart, their first-round pick, was also in a contract holdout until Friday.
“They’ll need both of them to help a defense that ranked 25th last season. Still, with Joe Burrow and receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, the offense should be good for close to 30 points per game.”
ESPN has the Bengals at No. 9
In fairness, this isn’t necessarily ESPN’s “power ranking list” per se. It’s actually a list based on the strength of every team’s starting lineup. For all intents and purposes, it’s a power ranking list and the Bengals come in at No. 9.
“Biggest strength: Wide receiver. I could’ve gone quarterback, but not many teams can match the Ja’Marr Chase/Tee Higgins duo,” writes NFL analyst Mike Clay. “Chase has been great since being drafted in 2021 but cemented himself as elite in 2024 with league highs in routes, targets, receptions, receiving yards, receiving TDs and end zone targets. He’s the first player in league history to reach both 1,700 receiving yards and 17 TD catches in a single season. Higgins has battled injuries but posted 73 receptions for 911 yards and 10 TDs in 12 games last season. Andrei Iosivas and second-year Jermaine Burton provide good depth.”
It says very little for the Bengals’ secondary that Clay thinks they are a bigger problem than the offensive line. Sharp Football Analysis ranked the Bengals’ o-line at second-to-last in the entire NFL last year. So, Clay not listing them first doesn’t bode well for the back end of the defense.
“Biggest weakness: Secondary. Offensive line was a candidate, but secondary is a larger issue,” Clay continues. “Longtime slot man Mike Hilton and safety Vonn Bell were the top offseason departures, yet the team made no notable additions. That leaves Cam Taylor-Britt, Dax Hill (who tore his ACL in Week 5 last season), DJ Turner II and Josh Newton as the top corner options; Geno Stone and Jordan Battle are the starting safeties. None of those players posted an above-average PFF grade in 2024.”
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