Toughest remaining games on Bengals 2022 schedule

The Cincinnati Bengals will face their share of tough opponents in 2022, all of whom unsurprisingly hail from the AFC.

Starting the season with a 2-3 record is less than ideal, but at this point, it's all about looking ahead. Cincy has a fairly easy stretch before their BYE, but after that week the Bengals' playoff-contending mettle will be put to the test.

Here are the most difficult remaining matchups on the Bengals' schedule.

Week 13 vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Hello, old friend. We meet again. The Bengals will face the Chiefs for the third time in the last two years, holding a 2-0 advantage, but both teams have drastically changed since their last meeting.

Cincy got a new offensive line and Kansas City lost their top wideout, among other differences.

Between the two of them, the Kansas City Chiefs unequivocally have the more consistent streak in recent history with the head coach-quarterback duo of Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid, and Mahomes' Superman talents and Reid's football IQ just might best Cincy this time around.

Through five weeks of the season, the Chiefs have looked like a serious playoff contender. The Bengals have not. Despite losing Tyreek Hill, Patrick Mahomes has arguably evolved into a better quarterback overall, relying more on his own talents to win games. The league got a taste of that in the Chiefs' 41-31 rout of the Bucs and in the Chiefs' recent win over the Raiders, when Mahomes threw four touchdowns against zero interceptions.

If the Bengals are facing that version of Mahomes come Week 13, the team should be very, very scared. Burrow has a good history of coming back late in games but has declined a bit in form in 2022; Mahomes, on the other hand, looks even better.