Fair or foul?
Are the Cincinnati Bengals, who no one ever would’ve imagined would start the 2024 campaign 0-3, the most overrated NFL team?
Sports Illustrated’s Gilberto Manzano thinks so.
“It’s time to stop crowning the Bengals for beating the Kansas City Chiefs once,” Manzano wrote.
“Yes, that doesn’t summarize how monumental that victory was, but the purpose of this section is to convince the football public to forget about what the Bengals did on Jan. 30, 2022. Many believe the Bengals will consistently be as good as they were during the ’21 playoffs. I’m not here to diminish the Bengals’ memorable playoff victory, because only that team can say they beat Patrick Mahomes in the postseason without Tom Brady on their side. And they probably would have won Super Bowl LVI if Aaron Donald hadn’t blown up a crucial play late in the game. It was a special season in Cincinnati, but it’s time to move on.
“The Bengals will be in the playoff mix most seasons as long as they have Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase, who needs a contract extension. But they’re far from being legitimate Super Bowl contenders and haven’t appeared that way since the 2022 season.”
At this point, it’s hard to argue with Manzano.
The Bengals’ Super Bowl LVI loss to the Rams is over two and a half years in the past. They fell short in 2022, losing to the Chiefs in an AFC Championship Game rematch. Then, they missed the playoffs entirely a season ago and are on the brink of a lost 2024 season, despite once again being among the favorites to reach the Super Bowl.
Saying this, what do you think? Is it fair to call the Bengals the NFL’s most overrated team?
