Cincinnati Bengals can be in playoffs, win AFC North if beat Baltimore Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers
With elimination of the New York Jets from the playoff race and loss of the Pittsburgh Steelers to the Dallas Cowboys, the Cincinnati Bengals have a clear chance to secure a berth into the second round through the second wildcard, claim the American Football
Conference (AFC) North division, and most importantly settle their score with the Baltimore Ravens and Steelers who have beaten them for half a dozen times.
The Tennessee Titans beat the Jets 14-10 to pave the way for the Bengals to claim the last wildcard from the AFC to the playoffs. In comparison with the Steelers (7-7), another closer contender for the playoffs, the Bengals are a win ahead of them at 8-6.
They just have to hold their nerve and beat the Steelers at their home field this weekend.
If the Bengals win versus the Steelers they will be through to the playoffs guaranteed. If the Steelers win they will still have a chance but would like to see the points’ table situation favouring them.
Once they are through to the playoffs, they will have a fair chance to beat the Baltimore Ravens in the closing week of the season and claim the AFC North title. This will be for the first time since 2009 when they clinched the division last time.
The Ravens are at 9-5, and with two possible victories the Bengals will jump ahead of them with 10-6 points. If they lose to the Ravens but Ravens lose their other game of the season, they will have a tiebreaker advantage and win the division. In that case
they would need to see the Steelers losing their games too.
Although it appears difficult, the Bengals can be through to the playoffs. It will be for the second time in their history that they are through to the second round. They were in the playoffs through a wildcard in 2011 and have a fair chance to do that again
this year.
Possible wins over the Steelers and Ravens will also settle their score with the rivals. They are 0-6 against both teams, respectively over the past two seasons, and wins can help them through this psychological barrier once and for all.
Safety Chris Crocker explains the Bengals situation:
"We really haven't done anything yet. I'm not going to say this is a defining moment because we play these guys twice a year. But this is very big, especially at the end of the season.”
He added:
"We're picking up momentum. These teams are postseason teams every year. Pittsburgh and Baltimore are always in the postseason and they always go deep, so it's important for us to play well against them now in order to go in with some momentum if we do make
the postseason."
It might sound all too easy and visible for the Bengals, but they know that beating their AFC North rivals is not an easy task. They can exploit the Steelers injury situation to their gains but getting past the Ravens will be very challenging for them.
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