Cincinnati Bengals 2-Point Conversion: A Rivalry Is Budding

The Bengals and Chiefs are set to meet for the third time in two years and many are looking to this match-up as the NFL's next big rivalry.

The Bengals appear to be firing on all cylinders at just the right time. Many looked to this upcoming stretch as "murderer's row," as Cincinnati will be tested to the max in each game the rest of the season. Now they are looking to take the next step and take down a host of teams they can—or will—meet in the postseason.

The Next Big Thing...

There's no name in the NFL bigger than Patrick Mahomes. Yeah, you can talk about Tom Brady, but he's on his way out. Aaron Rodgers? Same thing. Lamar Jackson? Exciting, but doesn't turn the dial like Mahomes. Josh Allen, Justin Jefferson, Derrick Henry, Aaron Donald, Micah Parsons—all great players, but none of them have the star power of Mahomes.

However, Joe Burrow might be rising to that level. 

I've seen some point to this upcoming matchup between the Chiefs and Bengals as this generation's Brady vs Manning—which we certainly could be seeing the early stages of. If things stay on their current trajectory, it will be Mahomes, Burrow, and Allen that will run the AFC for the foreseeable future. Much like Brady, Manning, and Ben Roethlisberger did for the better part of two decades.

This will be the third time in two years that Burrow and Mahomes face-off, which is impressive considering they are in different divisions. But let's revisit Brady vs Manning for a moment. Those two went head-to-head 17 times over the course of 15 seasons and were never in the same division. It was a matter of each of their teams consistently finishing in first place in their respective divisions as well as five postseason meetings.

Now, we see Burrow and Mahomes getting set to go on a similar collision course—and last year's AFC Championship game will only intensify things after the young, Cinderella team upset the Super Bowl LIV Champions and Super Bowl LV runner-up. Burrow jumped out to a nice 2-0 lead and is the only quarterback drafted since 2017 that is .500 or better against the former NFL MVP.

Now, the potential return of Ja'Marr Chase allows the Bengals' offense to go to another level against the NFL's top-scoring offense (29.6 points per game). They are one of just a few teams that can legitimately trade punches and keep pace with the Chiefs. 

Kansas City hasn't missed a beat since trading Tyreek Hill and each of their acquisitions at wide receiver has stepped up and contributed in some way, keeping defenses guessing as to who the receiver du jour will be for that game.

...But This Is A Must Win

Ok, "must win" might be a bit strong, but the Bengals have to take advantage of the Ravens opening the door for the AFC North crown by losing to the Jaguars. Last week, I talked about what needed to happen in order for the Bengals to win the division and one of them just happened—an unexpected loss by the Ravens to a lesser opponent.

Now, the door is open and the Bengals can kick it off its hinges, starting with another win over the Chiefs.

Kansas City has won five in a row since losing to the Bills. They're in control of the AFC West: you know, that division that was supposed to be one of the best and most competitive we've ever seen, but actually stinks? This game flat out means more to Cincinnati than it does to Kansas City.

The two biggest threats the Chiefs provide are Mahomes' mobility and ability to extend plays and the fact that Travis Kelce seems to be impossible to cover. While Cincinnati is 28th in the NFL, averaging just 1.5 sacks per game, you don't need to set sacks in order to win this game. 

Instead, the Bengals have to keep Mahomes from running around with ease to buy himself and his guys time. Keep contain and generate pressure in order to force throws. The more he improvises, the more dangerous he becomes.

Cincinnati happens to be middle-of-the-pack against tight ends, allowing the 15th best production against the position this season, but Kelce is a different animal altogether. Mark Andrews is the closest player the Bengals have faced and in that game he finished with eight receptions for 89 yards and one touchdown.

Lou Anarumo could concede and play the game where Kelce will get his, but shut down all the other playmakers, but that's playing with fire. Kelce has the ability to score every time the Chiefs are in the red zone and already has a four touchdown game this season.

This is why the Bengals' offense has to be in peak form. Chase and Joe Mixon returning could be massive. While Samaje Perine has played well in Mixon's absence, he doesn't have the explosiveness that Mixon does.

It's going to be an offensive explosion and has the makings of being one of those games where whoever has the ball last will win.

Extra Point

Mahomes has never lost three games in a row to the same team. In fact, there isn't a team in the NFL that he's lost to three times in the regular season in his career. Talk about the opportunity to give this budding rivalry a violent shove into "biggest rivalry in the AFC."

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