Joe Burrow spent Cincinnati's final offensive drive against the Philadelphia Eagles on the sideline. Not because he was injured, but because the Bengals were down so big, it didn't make sense to risk even having him out on the field.
This understandably didn't sit well with Burrow, and after the game -- a 37-17 Philadelphia win -- he delivered a blunt assessment of the Bengals, who fell to 3-5 on the season and an embarrassing 0-4 at home with the loss.
"We're not good enough," Burrow said. "We're not good enough."
Joe Burrow on what today says about his team: “We’re not good enough. We’re not good enough.” pic.twitter.com/YxGC4FrjmB
— Paul Dehner Jr. (@pauldehnerjr) October 27, 2024
Burrow knows the Bengals haven't been good enough, but he still thinks they can make a run
You know it pains Burrow to have to say that, especially considering how well he's been playing this season, but he isn't wrong. Cincinnati has continuously come up short against tough competition during the current campaign, as evidenced by their losses to the Kansas City Chiefs, Washington Commanders, Baltimore Ravens and Philadelphia.
Meanwhile, Cincinnati's three wins have come against the Carolina Panthers, Cleveland Browns and New York Giants. Those three teams had a combined four wins heading into Week 8. None of them are playoff teams, and none provided a truly tough test for Cincinnati.
More Bengals news: Bengals can probably kiss their playoffs hopes goodbye after embarrassing loss to Eagles
But, while Burrow knows that the Bengals haven't been good enough so far this season, he also isn't ready to count them out. In order to give themselves a chance at a playoff berth, Burrow thinks the Bengals probably need to hit the 10-win mark, which would require them winning seven out of their final nine games. A feat that Burrow dubbed "doable."
Asked Burrow how close is hole being too deep to dig out of "10 wins usually gets you in and that means we've got to win 7-of-9 and that's doable."
— Mike Petraglia (@Trags) October 27, 2024
So, what has to change for the Bengals? Having Tee Higgins back will help, as they're now 0-3 without him this season. They also need to figure out a way to establish their ground game. They've been one of the least-productive rushing teams all season, and they mustered just 58 total rushing yards against Philadelphia with an average of 2.9 yards per rush. That's simply not going to get the job done, and that isn't lost on Burrow.
The Bengals need to strike a better balance between running and passing, as their attack is simply too predictable at this point. There's also clearly issues that they need to iron out on defense, as things looked entirely too easy for the Eagles offense on Sunday. Jalen Hurts completely controlled the action, and the Bengals just didn't have any answers.
At the end of the day, they simply might have too many issues to overcome to be a viable playoff team this season, even if Burrow continues to hold out hope.