Bengals Schedule Rumors: Cincy hosts Ravens on SNF in Week 1

The latest we’ve heard about the Cincinnati Bengals schedule for the 2022 season isn’t from the most reliable source but it’s hard not to get excited about this possibility.

An account dedicated to leaking games for the upcoming NFL season has tweeted out that it’s possible we’ll see the Bengals vs. Ravens on Sunday Night Football in Week 1.

Now, yes, I’m going to state the obvious here — This source isn’t credible. I’m here to discuss the rumored matchup.

Bengals Schedule: Week 1 vs Ravens on Sunday Night Football?

If this matchup is confirmed on Thursday night when the NFL reveals the entire schedule for the 2022 season, I wouldn’t be the least bit shocked. The league always puts two good teams head-to-head for the first Sunday night game of the year and the Bengals and Ravens both fit that mold.

While Baltimore had a down year in 2021, they were incredibly banged up, which showed during the two matchups against the eventual AFC champs. The Bengals had a lot of motivation to beat Baltimore for the butt-kickings they had given Cincy over the years and it felt really good to return the favor in both matchups this past season.

Cincinnati didn’t receive any primetime games a season ago but that wasn’t entirely surprising. They were coming off a four-win season and no one expected them to do what they did in the 2021 season. The cat’s out of the bag now, however, and the Bengals are going to get their fair share of primetime games.

If this rumor is true, the Bengals will get to face a fully healthy Ravens team so neither side can use the “We were injured!” excuse. It’d be a fair fight between two really good teams in the AFC North.

Some fans might be skeptical about the team playing on Sunday Night Football, a platform that the organization hasn’t performed well on in recent years but as we saw last winter, these aren’t our parents’ Bengals. Joe Burrow and company changed the way people look at the Bengals so let’s cut that “Not good on Sunday Night Football” crap.

Personally, I’d love to see this as the opening game for the Bengals. They’d get to open up their most anticipated season ever in primetime against a hated rival. What’s more exciting than that?