Bengals start strong but limp to the finish line in PFF simulation
The Cincinnati Bengals take advantage of their weak early-season schedule in the latest simulation from Pro Football Focus. The site allows you to run different season simulations for each team so I've been running one simulation for the Bengals each week.
The latest involved the three Bengals receivers putting up incredibly low numbers and the team finishing with a 10-7 record.
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In the latest sim, the Bengals, despite their strong start, finish the season with an 11-6 record and while that might be enough for them to win their third-straight division title, it'd be close with how tough the AFC North is.
Here are the results from the latest Bengals PFF sim
- Week 1 @ Browns: 13-12 Win
- Week 2 vs Ravens: 29-26 Win
- Week 3 vs Rams: 24-20 Win
- Week 4 @ Titans: 23-9 Win
- Week 5 @ Cardinals: 24-17 Win
- Week 6 vs Seahawks: 25-7 Win
- Week 8 @ 49ers: 21-24 Loss
- Week 9 vs Bills: 7-19 Loss
- Week 10 vs Texans: 26-20 Win
- Week 11 @ Ravens: 36-21 Win
- Week 12 vs Steelers: 30-18 Win
- Week 13 @ Jaguars: 20-31 Loss
- Week 14 vs Colts: 30-13 Win
- Week 15 vs Vikings: 20-10 Win
- Week 16 @ Steelers: 10-21 Loss
- Week 17 @ Chiefs: 23-26 Loss
- Week 18 vs Browns: 24-31 Loss
The good news here is that the Bengals finish with a respectable record, helped by their 6-0 start to the season. The Bengals could absolutely run the table in their first six games, as only two of those six opponents made it to the playoffs last season.
After the bye week is when things get tougher, as the Bengals immediately face the 49ers and Bills, dropping both of those games. They rebound with three straight wins (and sweep the Ravens, which would be great) and enter Week 16 with just three losses on their resumé.
Unfortunately, the wheels fall off a bit for Cincinnati in those final three games. They lose all three of them, which would cost them dearly in the AFC playoff standings.
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Fans would probably be okay if this was how the season went down but the concerning part is the struggles in those final three games. Bengals fans have seen firsthand at how being hot entering the playoffs can propel you to the biggest game of the season or at least on the cusp of it.