Last week: 18 (-3)

Record: 3-2

Last week I noted that, assuming Cleveland, Jacksonville, and Washington don’t make the playoffs and Baltimore does, the Bengals were 12-0 against non-playoff teams since Andy Dalton took over week 1 last year, and 0-10 against playoff teams. Well, unless Miami is a playoff team, that spotless record seems to be gone. I had the Bengals as an overrated team coming into the season because of their struggles against good teams and now they appear to be overrated once again. Look at who they’ve beaten, Washington (2-3), Cleveland (0-5), and Jacksonville (1-4). The latter two are the two worst teams in these Power Rankings and they only beat Cleveland in Cincinnati by 7.

They’re now a dark horse team in the running to be the team that goes from out of the playoffs to 5 wins or fewer, which is where I had them before the season. After a game in Cleveland this week, potentially a trap game, the Bengals face Pittsburgh, Denver, the Giants, San Diego, Dallas, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore, all of whom could easily make the playoffs. After Cleveland, their only remaining easy opponents are Oakland and Kansas City.

Studs

LT Andrew Whitworth: Allowed 1 quarterback hurry on 52 pass block snaps

RE Carlos Dunlap: 2 quarterback hits and 2 quarterback hurries on 19 pass rush snaps, 2 solo tackles, 2 assists, 2 stops

SS Reggie Nelson: Allowed 2 catches for 8 yards on 2 attempts, 9 solo tackles, 1 assist, 4 stops, 1 missed tackle

Duds

QB Andy Dalton: 26 of 43 for 234 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions, 1 drop, 1 batted pass, 66.9 adjusted QB rating, pressured on 14 of 49 drop backs, (3 scrambles, 3 sacks, 4 of 8)

RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis: Rushed for 14 yards (8 yards after contact) on 9 attempts, allowed 1 quarterback hurry on 2 pass block snaps, caught 1 pass for 2 yards on 2 attempts

WR Andrew Hawkins: Caught 5 passes for 47 yards on 12 attempts on 40 pass snaps, 3.4 YAC per catch, 1 drop, 2 interceptions when thrown to

ROLB Manny Lawson: Allowed 4 catches for 63 yards on 6 attempts, 1 solo tackle

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