5 overreactions from Bengals Week 1 loss to Browns
- Is the motivation gone?
- Will Burrow pull a Luck?
- Divisional hopes dashed
- Playoff hopes in shambles
- Window closed
By Eric Bruns
Bengals will miss the playoffs
Now saying they’ll finish last in their division and they’ll miss the playoffs sounds redundant but, with the new playoff format mathematically it’s possible for all four teams in a division to make the postseason.
So, the Bengals could finish last in the AFC North and still sneak in as a seven-seed. However, the AFC as a conference is so stacked that this is highly unlikely. Even with Week 1 losses the Chiefs and Bills will still be competing for the AFC title.
There is pretty much every team in the AFC that is in contention except maybe the Colts and Texans only because they’re rebuilding. On paper, all 14 other AFC teams have a shot at getting into the postseason.
Before the full schedule is released...
— NFL (@NFL) May 11, 2023
Every team's strength of schedule in 2023. ⬇️
📺: 2023 NFL Schedule Release -- Tonight 8pm ET on @NFLNetwork pic.twitter.com/82xmSqdaQY
Their strength of schedule bodes well for Cincinnati ranking 17th among all other teams, but everyone in the AFC North has an easier schedule. There is a price to stay on top of your division in this league, the Bengals will be paying it this season.