It was all right there in front of the Cincinnati Bengals. If they managed to take down the then-winless New York Jets at home at Paycor Stadium, the Bengals would have been 4-4 with the AFC North crown there for the taking, especially after the Pittsburgh Steelers lost on Sunday night, dropping them to 4-3.
Well, as we all know, the Bengals did not beat the winless Jets despite holding a 14-point lead over them on multiple occasions on Sunday. Nothing short of a potential season-costing debacle.
It would have been a bad loss regardless of the situation, but knowing that the AFC North title would have become a more realistic scenario with a win only makes the defeat that much worse.
Bengals derail AFC North hopes with awful Week 8 result
Cincinnati lost Joe Burrow for at least three months back in Week 2 with a toe injury. At the time, the team and the fans hoped that Jake Browning could keep the team afloat enough that by the time Burrow was able to return in mid-to-late December (which seems like a realistic possibility), the Bengals would have something to play for.
Browning proved he wasn't the answer so the Bengals traded for Joe Flacco, who, to his credit, has played well. The 40-year-old quarterback has thrown seven touchdowns and zero interceptions in his three Bengals starts and given his new team a chance to win the two games they ultimately lost. He's done what he was brought in to do.
The problem has been the defense. This defense allowed Justin Fields and an inept Jets offense to look like world beaters, as they scored 39 points and walked out of Paycor Stadium as the victors. If the Bengals defense could have made one more stop, the good guys are 4-4 right now and on the cusp of taking the lead in the division.
By losing this game, the 3-5 Bengals made their path to an AFC North title much more difficult. They're not out of it yet but they squandered a massive opportunity for sure.