Despite being 3-6, Joe Burrow knows the Bengals are in the thick of things with the Steelers and the Ravens. Pittsburgh leads the AFC North, but is barely over .500, and Cincinnati can knock it down to an even record. Should that play out, all bets are off as far as how the division falls by the end of the season.
At least that’s what Burrow and the Bengals are banking on as they head out to play the Steelers. Although he won’t be back this week, the team has put up points without him. The issue has been the defense, historically bad thus far. The Bengals allowed 31 points against the Steelers a few weeks ago, but with Joe Flacco at quarterback, they managed to score 33. Not even 38 points were enough to win their past two games, however. Still, they’re energized to see the face of the franchise working his way back.
“Our division is wide open. I think Pittsburgh’s 5-4 at this point”, Burrow said, assessing the Bengals’ prospects for the AFC North relative to the Steelers, via Ari Meirov. “We play them this week. So, everything is still there in front of us. It’s very rare that our division looks like this, but it does this year. I think we’ll be, at least, in it until the end”.
#Bengals QB Joe Burrow on if they are a playoff team:
"Our division is wide-open. We play Pittsburgh this week. Everything is in front of us. It's very rare our division looks like this, but it does this year."
Burrow says the only realistic path for them is winning the… https://t.co/5LKSbYHvHV pic.twitter.com/QTApt6M4CS
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 10, 2025
The Steelers are the worst division leader in the NFL, nobody else with a record worse than 6-3, while the Bengals are the only team in the NFL to be within two games of the division lead while being three games under .500. They are one of four third-place teams still in the same mix, but the only one without a winning record.
Indeed, the Bengals have more control over the AFC North with the Steelers leading than they do a Wild Card spot. While the Jaguars, occupying the seventh seed, are also 5-4 like the Steelers, the Bengals don’t play them again. They did already beat them head-to-head back in Week 2, though, so that helps.
“I think it would be very difficult for us to be a Wild Card team, at this point”, Joe Burrow said about the prospects of the Bengals making the playoffs without going through the Steelers and Ravens in the AFC North. “Obviously a lot of football to be played, but I think that’s difficult. I think our best path would be, win the division”.
The Bengals went 2-0 in the two games Burrow started, though he only played 20 minutes of that second start. Since then, they are 1-6, the Bengals’ only win coming against the Steelers, 33-31. If they can beat Pittsburgh again, they would be one game out of the division lead with the tiebreaker. Can the Bengals hold on until Burrow returns to make a run at the AFC North?
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