The Cincinnati Bengals may look OK record-wise at 2-1 through three games, but Sunday's 48-10 debacle in Minnesota suggests this might be the last time they're above .500 for the season.
Although the Bengals will still be atop the AFC North entering Week 4 regardless of whether or not the Ravens win on Monday Night Football, they hardly look like a playoff contender or worthy division champion. Being without Joe Burrow is a big reason for the overall sense of dread in Cincinnati.
We have some fresh NFL power rankings to dive into for Week 4 now that most of the Week 3 slate is in the books. As you might expect, it ain't good news for Bengals fans.
Bengals advised to move off Jake Browning already in Week 4 NFL power rankings
Lou Scataglia of FanSided's NFL Spin Zone released his latest NFL power rankings on Monday morning. After placing Cincinnati in 14th on the heels of Week 2's 31-27 thriller against the Jaguars, Scataglia has the Bengals approaching full-blown Bungles status in 21st out of 32 teams.
The most interesting take within this piece is the suggestion that Cincinnati should already pivot off of longtime backup quarterback Jake Browning in favor of a certain veteran in Atlanta.
"The Bengals should see if they can pry Kirk Cousins away from the Atlanta Falcons, but some may not think that Cousins is a better option than Browning at this point. It’s really a shame, as Cincy did add a ton of talent this offseason and finally seemed to get moderately-serious about fielding a competitive team."
I'm not so sure what the Bengals did this offseason would qualify as adding a ton of talent. It was more about retaining their core pieces, and they honestly waited too long to acquire key contributors like Noah Fant, Dalton Risner, and Mike Pennel to name a few.
Also not convinced that Captain Kirk could cure what ails this Bengals offense. Not only is Zac Taylor's scheme bland and the rushing attack pretty much nonexistent, but Cincinnati's struggles in the trenches wouldn't bode well at all for the immobile Cousins.
Plus, the Falcons just got blown off the field on the road in a 30-0 shutout by the Panthers, whose defense looked like an 11-man sieve before Week 3. Michael Penix Jr. struggled to the point where Atlanta could consider going back to Cousins in the next month or so.
Placing the AFC's current No. 4 playoff seed No. 1 in the latest NFL power rankings seems a bit aggressive and perhaps is a slight overreaction. Nevertheless, that's the point of power rankings, and the Bengals deserve all the heat they're taking in the aftermath of such a humiliating display in Minneapolis.
My only source of optimism at this point is the fact that Vikings cornerback Isaiah Rodgers literally had one of the best individual performances in the history of the NFL on Sunday. A long pick-six, and a long fumble recovery and run for another TD? That's cause for any team to see the score run away from them.
A major test looms in Week 4's edition on Monday Night Football in Denver, where the Bengals will visit a desperate 1-2 Broncos team. I'd personally have Cincinnati somewhere near 17th or 18th in my own power rankings, but if this week results in another double-digit loss, the Bengals deserve to be well into the 20s on the league-wide hierarchy until they prove otherwise.