The 2023 NFL regular-season is only four weeks old but it doesn't take long for a team to be out of playoff contention. The Cincinnati Bengals have not played well to start the season and they're 1-3 as a result.
While this is obviously bad news because this team had been to back-to-back AFC Championship games and had Super Bowl aspirations this year, one of the lone benefits from a disappointing season is having a high draft pick. If the season ended today, the Bengals would be selecting in the top 10.
This means they'd be adding an immediate game-changer to their already-stacked lineup.
2024 NFL Draft order after Week 4
- Chicago Bears (0-4)
- Chicago Bears (0-4) (Via Carolina Panthers)
- Las Vegas Raiders (1-3)
- Denver Broncos (1-3)
- Minnesota Vikings (1-3)
- New York Jets (1-3)
- New England Patriots (1-3)
- Cincinnati Bengals (1-3)
- Arizona Cardinals (1-3)
- New York Giants (2-2)
- Green Bay Packers (2-2)
- New Orleans Saints (2-2)
- Arizona Cardinals (1-3) (Via Houston Texans)
- Houston Texans (2-2) (Via Cleveland Browns)
- Los Angeles Chargers (2-2)
- Jacksonville Jaguars (2-2)
- Washington Commanders (2-2)
- Los Angeles Rams (2-2)
- Atlanta Falcons (2-2)
- Indianapolis Colts (2-2)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (2-2)
- Tennessee Titans (2-2)
- Seattle Seahawks (3-1)
- Dallas Cowboys (3-1)
- Detroit Lions (3-1)
- Miami Dolphins (3-1)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-1)
- Buffalo Bills (3-1)
- Baltimore Ravens (3-1)
- San Francisco 49ers (4-0)
- Kansas City Chiefs (3-1)
- Philadelphia Eagles (4-0)
The Bengals would own the eighth overall pick in the 2024 draft if the season ended right now. Of course, there's still a lot of football to be played but the Bengals are now multiple games behind the AFC North-leading Ravens, who also own the head-to-head tiebreaker over them. It's going to be hard for them to make a run at the division.
While the playoffs aren't totally in the rearview mirror yet, the Bengals haven't exactly been playing inspired football. If they don't figure things out quickly, they might end up owning a top-10 pick in next year's draft.