When the Cincinnati Bengals lost by three to the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl LVI, it felt like the beginning. Like the team's Super Bowl window was wide open. After all, the Bengals had drafted well and had a roster comprised of young stars on both ends of the ball. Their run back to the AFC Championship game the following year only worked to reinforce that notion.
However, virtually all the major moves that the team has made since then -- outside of extending Joe Burrow -- have worked to effectively close Cincinnati's Super Bowl window. Now, at 4-6 through 10 weeks of action in the 2024 campaign, Cincinnati is in danger of missing the playoffs for a second consecutive season.
So, how did we get here? Let's take a look.
The Bengals have failed to prioritize retaining their own top talent
The Bengals allowed stud safety Jessie Bates III to walk in free agency in 2023 because they didn't want to pay him what he was worth. Bates has thrived in Atlanta since signing with the Falcons, and Cincinnati's secondary has never recovered from the loss.
It was a similar story with Joe Mixon last offseason. The Bengals traded him to the Texans because they didn't want to extend him. This season, Mixon has been stellar in Houston, while CIncinnati has one of the weakest rushing attacks in the entire NFL. As a result, their offense has become more one-dimensional and predictable.
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Tee Higgins is next in line, All signs point to the Bengals allowing Higgins to walk in free agency in 2025 because they don't want to spend big on another receiver, presumably because they ultimately plan to given a big-time extension to Ja'Marr Chase. But they've even managed to muddle that situation up. Like Higgins, Cincinnati's best defensive player, Trey Hendrickson, requested a trade over the offseason because he was unhappy with his lack of long-term security in Cincinnati.
Drafting good players, developing them and retaining them is the goal, especially for a team that isn't necessarily a hot spot for free agents. But, when it comes to the retaining part, the Bengals seem to falter. The fact that the team has whiffed on some recent draft picks hasn't helped, either.
As an organization, when you have a quarterback as good as Burrow, you should be doing everything in your power to maximize his immense talent and surround him with as strong of a supporting cast as possible. Instead, the Bengals have basically done the opposite by cutting corners and nickle-and-diming their own players. As a result, it really feels like the organization has effectively closed its own Super Bowl window, which seemed so wide not too long ago.