A week ago, the Cincinnati Bengals were the toast of the NFL world. It seemed like everyone was high on Cincy and the future of the franchise.

But after a narrow loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game, those pro-Bengals voices quickly turned into skeptics.

The narrative started almost immediately after the loss to Kansas City. The video of Germaine Pratt showing his frustration with the loss led opposing fan bases and some media analysts to label the Cincinnati locker room as a problem.

And the looming contract extensions for Joe Burrow (he'll get his extension this offseason) and Ja'Marr Chase (next offseason) fueled the narrative that Cincy's roster will fall apart because of salary cap issues.

Bengals fans, however, shouldn't listen to those narratives.

Instead, they should listen to Burrow, who is beyond confident that this is just the beginning of a special run for Cincinnati.

"I feel great about the direction that we're headed in," said Burrow. "That's the great thing about the NFL, it's not like college where you only have four years, you have as many years as you want to, hopefully. We will come back, have a great offseason and get better as a team, get better individually, and come back next year ready to go."

"I think you can expect that," added Burrow when asked if he expected the Bengals to be in these kinds of games against KC over the next five to seven years. "We know the kind of team that they have, the kind of quarterback that they have, and the kind of coaches that they have. We expect to be back there and I think they do, too."

"Even last year, the expectation was to always be in this game and to win it," continued Burrow. "I think we have the guys in that room, going forward, that will put us in that position, along with the front office and the coaching staff. I feel very good about the direction that we're headed in. We've been in this game for two straight years. We have won one and lost one. Obviously, this one hurts but we will come back stronger."

Bengals fans should know by now that Cincinnati isn't one of the media darlings of the NFL. They're always going to have to work a little harder for positive national coverage.

But that's not necessarily a bad thing. We've seen that this team plays better with a chip on their shoulder. And getting doubted after two straight trips to the AFC Championship game should certainly provide that chip.

This is just the beginning for the Bengals. They're going to be a problem in the AFC for years to come.

Don't take my word for it, just listen to Joe Burrow.

Featured image via Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK