Cincinnati Bengals Two-Point Conversion: Dynamic Duo Heating Up

The Cincinnati Bengals continue their upward trajectory and have now gotten over .500 for the first time this season while stringing together back-to-back wins over the New Orleans Saints and Atlanta Falcons. The biggest takeaway from that stretch is how well Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase have played—and that could spell big trouble for the rest of the AFC and the NFL over the coming weeks.

They're Heating Up...

For those old enough to remember, we've officially activated NBA JAM rules and the dynamic duo are one game from officially being declared "on fire." Over the last two games, Burrow has thrown for 781 yards and six touchdowns while Chase has 262 receiving yards and four touchdowns. For Burrow, that's just 10 yards fewer the last two weeks than he had in the previous three games combined. For Chase, the last two games have surpassed his previous four combined [by 48 yards] and had doubled his touchdown total for the season in the first five weeks.

That's by far the most production from a quarterback-wide receiver duo over the last two weeks. 

With the Cleveland Browns, Carolina Panthers, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Tennessee Titans over the course of the next month, there is no sign of them stopping this meteoric rise. The best passing defense among those four is this week's opponent, Cleveland, who ranks 14th in the NFL with an average of 210.4 passing yards allowed per game. None of the remaining three are even in the top half and the Panthers are barely in the top 20.

Those two games mark Chase's third best back-to-back stretch of his young career. Last season, he posted 298 yards against the Detroit Lions and Baltimore Ravens early in the season, then had 391 yards late in the year against the Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs. Despite posting those numbers, he's never had four or more touchdowns in back-to-back games until his breakout performances against the Saints and Falcons.

For Burrow, those are his second best back-to-back numbers since late last season, also against the Ravens and Chiefs, where he threw for 971 yards and eight touchdowns. If he throws for 348 yards and four touchdowns on Monday in Cleveland, it'll be Burrow's best three game stretch of his career. More importantly, his success could help the Bengals get to 5-3 and pick up their first AFC North win of the season.

...Prime Time Lights and Pressure

The Bengals are 1-1 in prime time this season, beating the then undefeated Miami Dolphins and losing to division rival Baltimore on a last second field goal. For the Burrow-era Bengals, prime time hasn't been a huge issue.

Being 2-1 over the last two seasons so far in regular season prime time games, Burrow and these Bengals haven't crumbled on the big stage. Instead, they've played tough, tight games and have continued to build the belief that they can win no matter what time kickoff is or what stadium they're playing in.

A far cry from the days of "Prime Time Dalton," huh? As many of you remember, Andy Dalton had some of his worst games when they were the marquee matchup. He's just 6-18 in his career under the bright lights, this isn't the often underachieving Bengals of old.

Last week I said the Bengals needed to get Joe Mixon going, as he's in the midst of his longest stretch without rushing for 100 yards. The nice thing is, right now, they don't need him to put up big numbers on the ground. While it would certainly help to see him break through that ceiling and get one under his belt, the passing game has been so effective that Mixon hasn't had to carry the load.

While the Bengals have lost a few games they shouldn't have, this one coming up on Monday Night Football falls into the category of games they absolutely should win—but don't take the Browns lightly.

As they await the debut of DeShaun Watson, the Browns have been competitive just about every week, including last week where they nearly upset the Ravens. The Bengals are the only team in the AFC North without a division win this season and the Browns will be at the top of their game to ensure it stays that way.

The two-headed monster of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt is one of the best in the NFL. With the trade deadline looming, what better way to put Hunt on display, than to get him going on national television. That's a task the Bengals' defense should be up for—they've allowed 119.0 rush yards per game, but just 0.4 rushing touchdowns per game. Going up against the NFL's leader in rushing yards (740) and touchdowns (8) with Chubb and a very dangerous change of pace back in Hunt—who has 350 total yards and four touchdowns of his own—is going to be the primary focus for the Bengals this week.

Extra Point

While the Bengals lead the all-time series against the Browns 51-46, Cincinnati has lost four straight games to Cleveland and Burrow is 0-3 against them in his career—which might be the most mind blowing stat involving the Bengals' star quarterback.