Cincinnati Bengals 2020 schedule predictions: Picking every game

Cincinnati Bengals 2020 NFL season results

Though the Bengals do improve on their record from a season ago, it won’t get them anywhere close to the playoffs. While sweeping the Cleveland Browns in AFC North play was tremendous, the Bengals still got their teeth kicked in by the Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers. 2-4 in AFC North play is a start, but Cincinnati should have done better in its other 10 games.

The Bengals drop both of their fourth-place schedule games, falling at home to Justin Herbert’s Los Angeles Chargers and narrowly on the road vs. Tua Tagovailoa’s Miami Dolphins. Both games were winnable, but Cincinnati didn’t take advantage. They also didn’t take care of business against lesser divisions like the NFC East and the AFC South out of divisional rotation this year either.

Cincinnati goes 1-3 vs. both divisions with the Bengals’ only wins vs. the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars and the lousy New York Giants. Ultimately, Cincinnati doesn’t beat a single team with a winning record this year. Though they weren’t expect to, the Bengals did draft a quarterback No. 1 overall who did go 15-0 through the SEC gauntlet en route to a national championship.

Next: Every NFL Team's Best Draft Pick Of All-Time

So it’s 4-12 for the Bengals. They do double their win total from a season ago, but Cincinnati still finds itself picking in the top five of the 2020 NFL Draft. The Bengals should be able to draft a few more great players next spring, but six wins over two years can’t have the Brown Family feeling all that great about Zac Taylor entering his third year on the job. He’s on the hot seat now.

Prediction: 4-12 (Miss AFC playoffs)