ESPN hit the Cincinnati Bengals with some unnecessary disrespect this week.

The national sports media outlet revealed their latest NFL power rankings on Tuesday and they dropped Cincinnati a couple of spots despite their road win against the New England Patriots on Christmas Eve.

Cincy fell from No. 4 to No. 6 in ESPN's power rankings. The Bengals were passed by the Dallas Cowboys (No. 5) and the San Francisco 49ers (No. 4).

I can't understand why the Bengals dropped in ESPN's rankings. The only thing that makes sense is that Cincy isn't a top-tier team in ESPN's eyes.

The Bengals were essentially penalized for beating the Patriots on the road. I know this New England team isn't as strong as the Patriots teams that featured Tom Brady, but they're still a playoff-caliber team. And the fact that New England is fighting for a spot in the playoffs makes them even more dangerous.

Dallas, meanwhile, beat a Philadelphia Eagles team (in Dallas by the way) that was without quarterback Jalen Hurts, one of the favorites to win the NFL MVP award this season.

The Cowboys narrowly beat an Eagles team led by quarterback Gardner Minshew, a guy who was out of town for part of last week while speaking at the late Mike Leach's memorial service (Minshew played for Leach at Washington State). It was Minshew's first start of the season and only his third start since the beginning of the 2021 season.

It was a good win for the Cowboys, but it's not like they beat a full-strength Eagles team on the road. Instead, they beat a watered-down version in Dallas.

As for the 49ers, their win wasn't more impressive than the Bengals' win, either.

San Francisco won a home game against a Washington Commanders team that's currently in flux at the quarterback position. Washington is fighting for a playoff spot, but their hopes are on life support at this point.

Cincy's win was more impressive than the wins from Dallas and San Francisco, yet the Bengals are the team that dropped in ESPN's power rankings.

Don't let anyone ever tell you that biases don't exist, because ESPN just proved this week that they do.

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