With a 4-1 start under their belt, the Cincinnati Bengals are riding high in the AFC North. But a Week 6 contest with a desperate Steelers team could be Cincy’s toughest game of the year.
To put it lightly, the AFC North has been thrown into some disarray this season. The Steelers are a mess of an organization, the Ravens are surging early, and the Browns are actually competing. 2018 has been a year to forget for the division’s status quo, leaving the Cincinnati Bengals as division leaders through five games.
Feel free to drink the Kool-Aid, because the Bengals are no smoke show. Andy Dalton is on pace for a career season. Joe Mixon has stepped up in Giovani Bernard’s absence and made some serious noise as a rusher.
A.J. Green continues to be one of the best receivers in the league, and a reliable target for Dalton anywhere on the field. Geno Atkins is still a stud on the defensive line, Jessie Bates looks like a terrific draft pick and Nick Vigil has become a tackling machine.
Even with tight end Tyler Eifert out for the season, Cincinnati continues to chug along. In both Week 2 and Week 5, the Bengals scored big wins over the Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins, respectively. The Bengals came from behind to beat the Atlanta Falcons in Week 4, and have shown that they are “legit” throughout the season.
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Looking at the rest of their schedule, the Bengals have just a couple of very difficult games on the rest of the season. In Week 6, the Pittsburgh Steelers will come to Paul Brown Stadium, and the Bengals will travel to Kansas City for a date with the Chiefs in Week 7.
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Although the Chiefs might be 5-0 and scoring 35 points per game, it is very easy to make the case that the Steelers game will actually be Cincy’s toughest matchup of the season.
Of course, everyone knows that the Bengals and Steelers are bitter rivals. Outside of Steelers vs Ravens, this is the most intense matchup in all of the AFC North. And yet, it hasn’t been much of a rivalry, especially in recent years.
Since 2010, the Bengals and Steelers have played 17 times, with Cincinnati only putting together three victories. Week 6 will be a test for the Bengals physically, yes, but it will be a mental and emotional test above all.
On the physical side of things, Pittsburgh is coming in as a squad desperate to gain ground in the division. Sitting at 2-2-1, the Steelers are last in the division (due to a tiebreaker with the Browns). While they did grab a huge victory over the Falcons in Week 5, they still need a win in the division to get going.
The Bengals, on the other hand, need to prove that they can beat the Steelers. Cincinnati hasn’t scored a win over the black and yellow since Nov. 1, 2015. Since then, they are 0-6 against the Steelers, including the now-infamous playoff blunder from 2015.
The Bengals have a lot to prove in Week 6, not to the league, but to themselves. This Sunday, the Bengals will face a must-win situation, as they hope to extend their division lead, and finally defeat the Steelers.