The Athletic Gives Bengals Best Chance to Make 2026 NFL Playoffs Among Eliminated Teams

Cincinnati had arguably the most disappointing season of any NFL team in 2024-25.

Cincinnati Bengals head coach Zac Taylor raises his fist while leaving the field after the NFL game at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati on Saturday, Dec. 28, 2024. Cincinnati Bengals defeated Denver Broncos 30-24 in overtime. | Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

CINCINNATI — The Athletic's Mike Jones thinks Cincinnati has the best chance of any non-playoff team to get back into the field next season.

He had the Bengals first among the 18 teams that didn't make the 2025 NFL playoffs.

"A five-game season-ending win streak put the Bengals on the precipice of the postseason following a slow start to 2024," Jones wrote. "But the Broncos won their final regular-season game to clinch the AFC No. 7 seed, and that left the Bengals on the outside looking in. That final stretch showed what Cincinnati is capable of. The Bengals must pay wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and they need to invest in a defense that will have a new coordinator following the firing of Lou Anarumo. If they do so, Joe Burrow and company should have a shot at contention."

Cincinnati has now missed the playoffs in three of Joe Burrow's five NFL seasons, although two of those misses were directly correlated to Burrow's rookie campaign and injuries.

It'll be a little tougher to make it next year with a third-place schedule and the NFC North up next on the divisional rotation.

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