Cincinnati Bengals 2023-24 NFL Season Recap

Cincinnati Bengals NFL Season Recap

From training camp, Cincinnati Bengals fans had a pit in their collective stomach that could never be shaken. Not with the most important player on the team suffering a calf strain that forced him to the sideline the remainder of the preseason. Then came the Week 1 season opener of which Cincy lost to the Browns 24-3 as short 1-point road dogs per the closing NFL odds. After that, a tough 27-24 handling at the hands of the Ravens who held Cincinnati to 282 combined yards in its home opener. Week 3 saw Zac Taylor’s troops escape the Rams to get the team into the win column for the first time, but the effort was immediately followed up with a miserable 27-3 loss at the Titans a short road chalk. Through the first month of the season, the ‘Natti stood 1-3 SU and 0-3-1 ATS while putting a grand total of 49 points on the board.

It wasn’t until Week 5 that the offense finally got into a groove. Joe Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase finally exploded against the Arizona Cardinals with the former notching his first 300+ passing yard performance of the season, while the latter scored huge for player prop bettors after going off for 192 yards and 3 TD. The Bengals would rip off three more wins highlighted by dominant showings against the 49ers in San Francisco and Bills at home. If they weren’t already, NFL bettors were all the way back in. Then tragedy struck under the Thursday night lights in Week 11 when Burrow got off the bus in Baltimore wearing a sling on his throwing hand. Right from the get-go, Joey Brrr looked off. Then with 6+ minutes remaining in the second quarter, Burrow got hit on a dump-off to Joe Mixon for a short gainer and landed on said wrist. On the very next play, Burrow would throw his final touchdown pass of the 2023-24 NFL betting season.

Right then and there, the Bengals season was all done but the crying. While Jake Browning led the team to a few wins and put forth some impressive performances, he didn’t make the Cincinnati faithful forget about No. 9. When it was all said and done, the Bengals went 9-8 SU and 7-8-2 versus the closing NFL betting lines with the over cashing in 10 times. Due to all the injuries, Cincy saw its two-season streak of going over its season win total get snapped. It also failed to live up to linemakers expectations who lined them the odds-on favorite to win a third straight AFC North title. Astute futures bettors were rewarded handsomely had they thrown a beer money flier on the Bengals not making the playoffs once word got out about Burrow’s training camp injury.

Cincinnati Bengals 2024 Offseason

Some decisions will need to be made in the offseason. The biggest unknown right now is whether Tee Higgins will be resigned or let go. While he stepped up a few times this year, he only partook in 12 games due to multiple injuries and has had issues with the injury bug two of the last three seasons. He’s a great receiver – when healthy - but I’m not sure upper management is willing to break the bank to hold onto his services.

The defense took a major step back this season with the unit getting taken to task both on the ground (No. 26) and through the air (No. 28). It amounted to the defense ranking out No. 23 in DVOA. It however was still able to generate pressure with Trey Hendrickson going off for a career-high 17.5 sacks leading to the league’s No. 15 ranked sack percentage. As much as the front office would love to shore up the defense, it’s the offense that butters the team’s bread right now but it still has one major flaw – pass protection.

Joe Burrow has been the victim of shoddy line play ever since Cincinnati selected him with the first pick of the 2020 NFL Draft. That was once again the case this season with the offensive line serving up 50 sacks that equated to the league’s tenth worst sack percentage allowed. Tankathon currently has the Bengals owners of the eighteenth pick in the draft. Hogs like Taliese Fuaga and Amarius Mims will likely be there for the taking in that range. If not, upper management could make a splash and trade up for a JC Latham or Joe Alt. Either way, I think it’s imperative to bring a reinforcement in to make Burrow’s job a bit easier once he returns to full health with a fourth place schedule laid before him.

Cincinnati Bengals Schedule & Results

The Cincinnati Bengals were founded in 1968 as an American Football League expansion franchise. They hold the distinction of being the last team formed in the old AFL.

The late great coach Paul Brown was the founder and first head coach of the Bengals. Brown was ousted by the Cleveland Browns in 1962 and stewed in exile until the Bengals' opportunity opened. Cincinnati became one of the most successful expansion franchises in pro football history. In their third season, Brown led the Bengals to the AFC Central title and set the stage for a perennial contender.

Cincinnati has never won a Super Bowl championship but has been to the big game three times. The 1981 Bengals lost to the San Francisco 49ers. The 1988 Bengals were defeated in the final seconds by the 49ers again. And then came the 2021 team that shocked the pro football and gambling world by making it to Super Sunday, only to lose another close one to the Los Angeles Rams.

Cincinnati Bengals Past Seasons (2000)

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