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Cincinnati Bengals Beat: Midseason News and Notes

Originally posted on Last Word On Sports
By Will Koshover | Last updated Nov 14, 2025 9:15 AM ET

The Cincinnati Bengals have played nine games, and we currently know they have a potent offense with Joe Flacco and a historically bad defense. Since Flacco took over against the Green Bay Packers in Week 6, he’s been fantastic, throwing to the best duo of wide receivers he’s ever had in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins . He’s notably a good resource for the team in the locker room and has provided a potential blueprint for Joe Burrow, changing the way he plays. Now, about that atrocious defense, the cavalry isn’t coming to help this season. Al Golden’s group needs a total rebuild, and it will need to be done mostly through the draft, but also supplemented in free agency next season. Let’s be clear: help is needed on all levels if Cincinnati is going to be a more respectable unit in helping Burrow win games. Here are some midseason news and notes for the men in stripes.

Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco (16) throws a pass in the fourth quarter of the NFL football game between Chicago Bears and Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati on Nov. 2, 2025.

Cincinnati Bengals Beat: Midseason News and Notes

The Joe Burrow Dilemma

The team opened the 21-day window for Burrow to be placed on the active roster on Monday, and the next two games will go a long way toward determining if he’ll see the field in 2025. Defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers certainly helps and would push the Bengals to 3-0 in the division in a down year for the AFC North. The dilemma is, do you play Burrow a bit earlier than needed if Flacco continues to roll in this offense? Burrow likely won’t be that dynamic early on in the pocket if he returns, so that’s a consideration. Ownership will be smart about this; they aren’t going to risk further injuring their franchise quarterback, especially if Flacco is effectively running the show.

In Focus

The one silver lining evident thus far for the Bengals is that, offensively, they are in a really good place moving forward. The OL has played well and settled in, and rookie guards Dylan Fairchild and Jalen Rivers seem to get better and more comfortable each week. Cincinnati also boasts some of the best skill players in the league, and running back Chase Brown is starting to get hot, as he usually does later in the year. This should allow the front office and the scouting staff to focus their attention on allocating the necessary resources to improve Cincinnati’s woeful defense.

Staff Changes

Owner Mike Brown is the most patient owner in professional sports, but even he has a limit when it comes to losing in the Burrow era. Missing the playoffs for the third consecutive season won’t sit well with him and could put head coach Zac Taylor firmly on the hot seat. They won’t fire anyone during the season, which is obvious considering how much of an embarrassment Golden’s defense has been. The season and the return of Burrow probably come down to Sunday against the Steelers. We’ll see which version of the Bengals show up.

This article first appeared on Last Word On Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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