Super Bowl-Bound Bengals Offer Lesson for Packers

The Green Bay Packers beat the Cincinnati Bengals during the season but it's the Bengals who are representing the AFC in the Super Bowl.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals, two teams the Green Bay Packers defeated this season, will play in the Super Bowl in two weeks.

There are some lessons to take away from that matchup. Here’s one that sticks out when examining the Bengals.

Packers Should Not Fear Failure

The Packers are prepared to hitch their wagon to Aaron Rodgers for the long haul. There’s no other way to break down this sentence from coach Matt LaFleur last week: “We would love for him to be a Packer and be a Packer to the day he decides to retire.”

However, it’s fair to wonder if their window of championship opportunity has closed. Maybe not completely, but by more than a little. They had everything in their favor this year, including the No. 1 seed – meaning a first-round bye and playoff games in cold weather and in front of fans – and a relatively healthy roster. How often does a team not only have the MVP quarterback but the good fortune of landing two star players – linebacker De’Vondre Campbell and cornerback Rasul Douglas – for next to nothing?

With major salary-cap problems, the Packers will be fortunate to retain receiver Davante Adams, let alone re-sign Campbell and Douglas. From a pure talent perspective, the 2022 team probably won’t be as good as the 2021 team. So, will Rodgers’ regular-season greatness ever translate to Super Bowl glory?

The Packers have fielded championship-contending teams for the better part of three decades. From an organizational perspective, after such sustained success, the potential of being bad has to be a scary thought. After all, coaches and general managers of bad teams typically find themselves calling Two Men and a Truck. For a franchise, losing is bad for business. You can’t sell NFC North Champions T-shirts if you aren’t NFC North champions, after all.

The Bengals are the opposites of the Packers. They’ve been awful for the better part of, well, forever. However, being bad comes with its perks. In 2019, the Bengals under first-year coach Zac Taylor lost their first 11 games before finishing 2-14. That allowed them to draft quarterback Joe Burrow with the No. 1 overall pick. Burrow struggled through some rookie growing pains before suffering a torn ACL at midseason. The Bengals finished 4-11-1. With the fifth pick of the draft, they selected receiver Ja’Marr Chase.

With Burrow and Chase forming one of the NFL’s great duos and with ample cap space to add several key players in free agency, the Bengals are going to the Super Bowl. Obviously, being bad, collecting top draft picks and having cap space doesn’t guarantee anything. Just look at the Detroit Lions, who have lost 10-plus games four consecutive seasons. Or the Jacksonville Jaguars, who went from 1-15 to 3-14 after drafting hot-shot quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

Still, an argument can be made that the Packers would be better off trading Rodgers and tagging and trading Adams for a heap of first-round picks. Sink or swim with Jordan Love.

If Love actually turns out to be decent, the Packers would at least be playoff contenders in 2022 because of their offensive line, running backs and defensive playmakers. And if Love stinks, then the Packers would be in position to draft a top quarterback in 2023.

Either way, they’d have a bunch of draft picks to reload. Everything about drafting Love might have been wrong, but Gutekunst’s first-round track record is excellent, otherwise, with Jaire Alexander, Darnell Savage, Rashan Gary and Eric Stokes.

No, there’s no guarantee the plan would work. Over the past 20 drafts, 40 quarterbacks have been taken with top-10 picks. Only three have earned All-Pro honors (Patrick Mahomes, Cam Newton and Matt Ryan). But there’s no guarantee riding with Rodgers for another three of four years will bring a championship, either.

If you’re Mark Murphy, there’s no reason to fear failure if you’re not totally convinced in a Rodgers-led future but you have total confidence in Gutekunst being able to put together a quick rebuild to set up another long run of success.

LESSON TO LEARN FROM RAMS: BE BOLD, STAY BOLD

Green Bay Packers’ 2022 Opponents

Here is a look at next season’s opponents. The dates and times for the games will be announced in the spring; the 2021 schedule was announced on May 12. Teams with an asterisk qualified for the playoffs.

Home: NFC North

Chicago Bears (6-11), Detroit Lions (3-13-1), Minnesota Vikings (8-9).

Home: NFC East

Dallas Cowboys* (12-5), New York Giants (4-13).

Home: AFC East

New England Patriots* (10-7), New York Jets (4-13).

Home: NFC North Winner

Los Angeles Rams* (12-5).

Home: Game 17 (Winner AFC South)

Tennessee Titans* (12-5).

Away: NFC North

Chicago Bears (6-11), Detroit Lions (3-13-1), Minnesota Vikings (8-9).

Away: NFC East

Philadelphia Eagles* (9-8), Washington Football Team (7-10).

Away: AFC East

Buffalo Bills* (11-6), Miami Dolphins (9-8).

Away: NFC South Winner

Tampa Bay Buccaneers* (13-4).