NFL's decision to flex upcoming Bengals-Chargers game extends an unfair midseason streak for Cincinnati
The NFL has officially flexed the Cincinnati Bengals into primetime for their Week 11 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers. Cincinnati's game in Los Angeles will now have a start time of 8:20pm ET on Sunday, Nov. 17. The game was originally scheduled for a 4:25pm ET kickoff (1:25pm local time), so the game is […]
The NFL has officially flexed the Cincinnati Bengals into primetime for their Week 11 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Cincinnati's game in Los Angeles will now have a start time of 8:20pm ET on Sunday, Nov. 17.
The game was originally scheduled for a 4:25pm ET kickoff (1:25pm local time), so the game is has been moved just under four hours later into the evening. The original SNF matchup between the Indianapolis Colts and New York Jets is now going to the 1:00pm ET slot.
There are two main reasons why this switch was made. Bengals-Chargers will feature two of the star quarterbacks from the 2020 NFL Draft class in Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert. Burrow has been putting up elite stats this season despite the Bengals' 4-5 record, and Herbert has led the Chargers to a 5-3 record after eight games.
Playoff implications are also in play here. The Bengals beating the Las Vegas Raiders this past weekend puts them back into playoff contention in a chaotic AFC, and the Chargers are second in the AFC West standings and are currently in the sixth spot as a wild card. The result of this game could factor into who ends up clinching a spot in January.
A great quarterback showdown in a meaningful game has all the makings of a primetime matchup. That's what the league wants, but it comes at a cost for the visiting team.
Bengals' streak of road primetime games gets extended
Playing under the lights is a great opportunity, but this means the Bengals will play in four road primetime games before hosting one again.
Cincinnati has already played in two primetime games this season, losing to the Washington Commanders in Week 3, and defeating the New York Giants on the road in Week 6. Up next on the Bengals' night road tour is a "Thursday Night Football" game against the Baltimore Ravens, the SNF bout in L.A. in Week 11, and a "Monday Night Football" game in Arlington against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 14 before finally hosting the Cleveland Browns on TNF in Week 16.
That's six primetime games with four of them on the road sandwiched between two home games. Three of their next four games are road primetime games! Ideally, you'd want the reverse to take advantage of a home crowd in that environment, even if that advantage hasn't exactly played into Cincinnati's favor this year. The Bengals just got their first home win on Sunday against the Raiders after losing their first four games at Paycor Stadium this season.
Hopefully this trend doesn't get repeated next year for the Bengals.
Zac Taylor confirms the worst for Erick All Jr. and delivers other injury updates for key Bengals players
The Bengals are pretty banged up entering Week 10.
