Bengals' playoff hopes take enormous hit following disappointing loss to Chargers

They're not yet mathematically eliminated from the postseason equation, but the Cincinnati Bengals' playoffs hopes took an enormous hit following their brutal 34-27 loss to the San Diego Chargers on Sunday Night Football. The margin for error is now razor-thin for the Bengals, who are now 4-7, moving forward for the remainder of the current campaign.

Heading into the evening, the Bengals had a 36 percent chance of qualifying for postseason play, according to the New York Times' updating playoff simulator. With a victory over San Diego, that number would have jumped up to 53 percent. But, with the loss it plunged in the opposite direction.

Bengals' playoff odds drop below 20 percent after loss to Chargers on Sunday Night Football

Following their Week 11 loss, the Bengals' playoff odds dipped down to 17 percent, which represents the lowest that it has been all season.

At this point, it basically feels like the Bengals will need to win out the rest of their schedule in order to give themselves a realistic chance of making the playoffs. Doing so won't be an easy task, at all, though, as Cincinnati's remaining schedule features not one, but two meetings with the AFC North-leading Pittsburgh Steelers.

In addition to two matchups with the Steelers, the Bengals also still have to face the Cowboys, Titans, Browns and Broncos. They have their bye in Week 12, so they'll at least get a little time to regroup after the deflating loss to the Chargers, but things are looking grim.

If the Bengals go on to miss the playoffs for the second consecutive season, there will be some major questions -- and perhaps some big changes -- for the team over the offseason. We're not there yet, though. There's still a decent amount of football to play this season, and [hopefully] no one in the Bengals' locker room is ready to call it quits just yet.

Next time we see the Bengals out on the field, it will be in Week 13 at home against the Steelers in a must-win situation. With a loss to Pittsburgh in that game, Cincinnati's playoff odds will drop all the way down to 8 percent.

It's hard to feel too good about the Bengals' chances in that game given the way things have been going for both teams in recent weeks, but hey, perhaps they'll be able to cook up a perfect game plan during the bye week.