This past week, the Cincinnati Bengals faced what many considered to be the toughest part of their schedule, yet they appeared totally unconcerned. They destroyed the 49ers 31–17, and the Bills will be their next “tough” opponent when they visit town for a Sunday night rumble in the Jungle in Week 9.
In a late-season matchup, the Bengals will play the Minnesota Vikings in Week 15 of the current season. This seemed to be a challenging game toward the conclusion of the season when the schedules were released in May.
After the Vikings started 0-3, however, it became less of an intimidating game. Then, the Vikings turned things around to get to 4-4 but now it’s all for naught as Kirk Cousins will miss the rest of the season with a torn Achilles.
Bengals vs. Vikings no longer a marquee match-up
Cousins might be a confusing quarterback sometimes but he gave the Vikings the best chance to win moving forward. They did trade for Josh Dobbs ahead of the deadline and Dobbs gave the Bengals all they could handle when they met up with him in the desert earlier this season. Whether it’s Dobbs or rookie quarterback Jaren Hall at the helm, however, the Vikings aren’t as scary as they would have been with Cousins.
This game could be the difference between the Bengals making the playoffs or watching from home or them winning the division or having to play in the postseason as a wild card team so the fact that it got a little easier is a plus. However, the fact that it’s now “easier” because of an injury to a well-respected quarterback, that’s unfortunate.
Here’s to hoping that Cousins has a speedy recovery and can continue balling out next year and beyond (as long as it’s not against the Cincinnati Bengals).
Leave a Reply