A few weeks ago, the Cincinnati Bengals were struggling to string together wins while the San Francisco 49ers were establishing themselves as Super Bowl favorites.

Well, well, well, how the turn tables. 

Cincinnati's first trip in eight years out to Santa Clara has a different vibe than expected. The Bengals are still working through offensive constipation and defensive inconsistencies, but the 49ers are all of the sudden losers of two straight games. They laid an egg against the Cleveland Browns last week, and failed to bounce back last night against the Minnesota Vikings, scoring just 17 points in each game.  

What looked like a mighty mismatch earlier this month now feels like the impending close battle many hoped it would be prior to the season. What's going on with the NFC darlings, and what can the Bengals take away from their struggles? Let's dive in.

Brock Purdy's luck running out

The ultimate enigma of a quarterback plays in red and gold colors. Purdy is mechanically capable of playing at a high level within structure and game script. He makes plays that clearly separate him from the bottom-level starters, but like a lot of young passers, he presses against pass rush and while trailing in the game, AKA literal and figurative pressure. 

This leads to mistakes, regardless if they end up costing him or not. They did against Minnesota.

Purdy threw two terrible interceptions against the Vikings in an attempt to engineer a comeback. He's thrown all three of his interceptions this year in the past two weeks, but not for a lack of trying. He's produced just as many Turnover Worthy Plays in the last two weeks as he was responsible for in the first five weeks when he was clean in the box score. 

Weeks	Turnover Worthy Plays	Interceptions
1-5	5	0
6-7	5	3

The pendulum always swings eventually. Only four other starters have a higher TWP% than Purdy's 4.3% figure. Odds point to him putting the ball in harm's way at some point against the Bengals, who have eight interceptions through six games. 

Trent Williams and Deebo Samuel's injuries

What's a 49ers' season without impactful injuries? Neither the best left tackle in the game nor one of the best weapons after the catch were able to play on Monday Night, and the offense sputtered in their absence. Samuel is already out for Sunday, but Williams at least has a chance to play despite not practicing for all of last week. One fewer day of rest, however, does not help his case. 

San Fran is better with Samuel out there, but their next-man up mentality within their skill position groups is unmatched. Brandon Aiyuk has already been producing at a career-best rate as the No. 1 option, Christian McCaffrey is a touchdown waiting to happen every snap, and when they need him to play receiver at a high level, very few tight ends do it better than George Kittle.

Purdy will have enough weapons to target, but not even Kyle Shanahan's wizardry can conjure up quality offensive line play out of nowhere. It's the biggest weakness of the 49ers' offense, and it looks like a painfully average group without Williams' transcendent abilities. His bookend at right tackle, Colton McKivitz, had a rough night against Danielle Hunter coming off the left edge and is generally inconsistent. Another Sam Hubbard masterclass inbound? It's a possibility.

Imperfect cornerback play 

The middle of the Niners' defense still feels impenetrable. Linebacker Fred Warner is if Troy Polamalu was even faster and bigger. Defensive tackle Javon Hargrave is simply a monster. While we're at it, Nick Bosa coming off the left edge is no worse than the fourth-best pass rusher in the league, and that feels like selling him short. Joe Burrow should feel lucky he's his close friend. 

The story of the 49ers revolves around so many truly elite stars playing on the same team. Their cornerbacks, however, can be challenged. 

Ja'Marr Chase has experience going against Charvarius Ward. The two battled when the Ward was on the Kansas City Chiefs two years back. Chase torched him for 83 yards and a touchdown on just three catches in their first meeting, and Ward held him to just one catch for 22 yards on two targets a few weeks later in the AFC Championship game.  

Ward has elevated his game since trading one red hue for another out west, but remains susceptible to big plays like most corners out there. Look no further than when rookie Jordan Addison took the ball away from him on a 60-yard touchdown. The same goes for his running mate Deommodore Lenoir, who may face Chase more often in this game since he exclusively lines up against receivers on the left side of the offense.

Ward and Lenoir gave up an average of 16.33 yards per catch against the Vikings. It's as good of a chance for Chase to continue shining and Tee Higgins to return to form as any.

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A struggling 49ers squad is by no means a pushover. The Vikings had to play outstanding football just to win by five points at home, which is another factor in all of this. The 49ers have not taken an L in Levi's Stadium in their last 11 games, including the playoffs. That loss came 366 days ago against the Chiefs (because of course it was them) and it ended a six-game winning streak at home leading up to it.

17 of their last 18 games at home are wins. Nothing too special here.

This was a real Super Bowl pick for some in the offseason. The game we get this Sunday may not look like two juggernauts clashing, but a win for the Bengals will be well-earned no matter how far the 49ers are veering off course.

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