Bengals lock in a major franchise accomplishment whether or not they make the playoffs
A 9-8 record may not get the 2024 Cincinnati Bengals into the playoffs, but it does lock in a winning season after a 19-17 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.What a fact to read out loud after this team was 4-8 a month ago.The Bengals started this decade with a 4-11-1 season in 2020. They've since […]
A 9-8 record may not get the 2024 Cincinnati Bengals into the playoffs, but it does lock in a winning season after a 19-17 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
What a fact to read out loud after this team was 4-8 a month ago.
The Bengals started this decade with a 4-11-1 season in 2020. They've since gone 10-7, 12-4, 9-8, and 9-8. That's four consecutive winning seasons for the Orange and Black, which has only happened once before in franchise history.
Bengals' streak of winning seasons continues
The Bengals had just two other streaks of at least three consecutive winning seasons before the '21 run to the Super Bowl. They finished above .500 for three straight years from 1975-77, and did the same for five straight seasons from 2011-15.
With their current streak now extended to four seasons, it's now the second-longest winning season streak in the history of the club.
The Bengals did need five consecutive wins to reach above .500 for the first time all season. They were 0-3, 1-4, and 4-8 at different points of the season. Finishing with more wins than losses wasn't in the cards until Saturday night came to a close in Pittsburgh.
1977 saw something similar occur. The Bengals were 4-5 that season and won four of their last five to get to 8-6 on the year. It wasn't enough to make the postseason that year, and the same fate may follow this year's team.
The 9-8 Bengals from 2023 also missed the postseason. Falling short again would make this year's squad the sixth in post-merger NFL history to win at least nine games in back-to-back years and miss the playoffs both times. The last team this happened to was the 2020-21 Miami Dolphins.
Making the playoffs is the priority, but winning seasons aren't anything to discard entirely. Four of head coach Zac Taylor's six seasons have ended with more wins than losses. It's unlikely for him to be let go of after this year, but even if those discussions are had, his ongoing streak will carry heavy weight. Only Marvin Lewis can boast a higher streak, and he never won a single playoff game let alone the five Taylor has on his resume.
A sixth playoff win may now be possible thanks to another winning season in Cincinnati. Even if that chance doesn't materialize, the Bengals can be proud of the fight it took getting here.
Joe Burrow clears the air after suffering head injury during Bengals’ needed win over Steelers
Burrow went down early in the third quarter in Pittsburgh.
