Could the bye week have gone any worse for the Cincinnati Bengals? Yes, it could have, but Joe Burrow's accelerated timeline to return from his turf toe injury at least provided some good vibes.
But as the Bengals gear up for Sunday's season series finale against the rival Pittsburgh Steelers, Week 11 already kicked off with a matchup that has ominous implications for Who Dey Nation.
As if there wasn't enough pressure going into this must-win Steelers game, the New England Patriots' 27-14 trouncing of the New York Jets on Thursday night was actually a bad look for Cincinnati. See where this is going...?
Bengals in for probable brutal reality check beyond Week 11
No matter how Sunday's game in Pittsburgh goes, the Jets-Pats outcome could very well be a harbinger of doom. Allow me to explain.
The Jets were 0-7 and hard-charging toward 0-8 before the Bengals blew that game against Gang Green in a 39-38 loss a few weeks ago. Then, Cincinnati proceeded to lose 47-42 to the Chicago Bears in even more unhinged fashion.
You can't really pinpoint one glaring issue on the Bengals' defense. It's bad-bad across the board.
Jets quarterback Justin Fields had another monster passing performance versus the Pats. A whole 116 yards on 26 attempts (4.5 average). Sure, Fields can execute deigned runs and did so with aplomb on New York's opening touchdown drive, but once those scripted plays are over and the Jets shy away from the QB run game, Fields is rendered all but useless.
So bear in mind that 116-yard throwing effort from Fields in Week 11. Just take a look at these numbers.
“How bad is the Bengals defense?” pic.twitter.com/1fuZxPzEuq
— j 🦅 (@JoelBleedsGreen) November 11, 2025
See the problem here? And then how about this — Cincinnati ranks well below the rest of the NFL in the aggregate of key defensive metrics:
Pass Defense Power Rankings through Week 10
— Jared Smola (@SmolaDS) November 13, 2025
✔️ Texans have emerged as the cream of the crop
✔️ Bengals 💩 pic.twitter.com/A6DnWshGsp
It's almost like you have to try to play and scheme that poorly. Is there a deliberate self-sabotaging effort abound in the Queen City? People are asking!
Guess who the Bengals play in Week 12? The mighty-again, 9-2 New England Patriots.
Sure, New England has had a soft schedule, but there's nothing softer than Cincinnati's defense at the minute. Pats QB Drake Maye can't apologize for the opponents laid before him, nor should he. What the second-year signal-caller is pulling off is no fluke.
Maye is a legit MVP candidate. He shredded the Jets for 281 yards through the air, completing 25 of 34 passes. His TD-INT ratio for the season is 20-to-5. I shudder to think how awful Maye will make the Bengals' secondary look in about a week's time, with extra days to prepare. He might throw for 500 yards. No exaggeration.
If Cincinnati can't stop Justin Freaking Fields from scoring points at will, what's it going to look like when Drake Maye rolls into Paycor Stadium?
Even in the event that Joe Flacco's incredible run continues and the Bengals keep it close, the defense has let up 39 combined points in their last two fourth quarters. Unless defensive coordinator Al Golden worked some bye week magic, chances are high that the Bengals' season will effectively be over in Week 12.