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Bengals Prowling For a Rebound in 2025

July 21, 2025 by CollegeFootballPoll.com staff

After a second consecutive 9-8 season left the Cincinnati Bengals out of the 2024 NFL playoffs again, quarterback Joe Burrow and Company look for vast improvement in 2025.

Burrow won the award for Comeback Player of the Year last season from the AP, the Pro Football Writers Association, and the Sporting News. After injuries reduced him to 10 games in 2023, he started all 17 games last season and threw for 4,918 yards with 43 touchdowns and just 9 interceptions. He led all NFL QB's in passing yards, attempts, completions, and touchdowns.

He bested Jared Goff (Lions) by 289 yards passing, and attempted 68 more passes than second-place Aaron Rodgers by launching 652 throws to Rodgers' 584. His 460 completions were 53 more than Tampa Bay's Baker Mayfield and Seattle's Geno Smith, and the 43 TD's were 2 more than Mayfield and Baltimore's Lamar Jackson .

By all measurements, Burrow had an incredible comeback season, but the running game was a major letdown as the Bengals finished 30th out of 32 teams in rushing yards per game (92.6), topping only the New York Jets and the Las Vegas Raiders.

Ja'Marr Chase was the envy of Fantasy owners in 2024 after finishing as the highest-scoring non-quarterback. The linked article points out that Chase's 5,425 receiving yards are the third-most all-time through a player's first four NFL seasons. He possesses the most full-PPR fantasy points among wide receivers during, and 5th-most of any non-quarterback during their first four seasons. He had career highs in 2024 with 127 receptions for 1,708 yards and 17 touchdowns.

However, Cincinnati had an anemic running game that was 30th among all 32 NFL teams.

Chase Brown led all ball carriers with 990 yards and a respectable 4.3 yards per rush. The 2023 fifth round draft pick out of Illinois added 360 receiving yards. But the second-leading rusher, Zack Moss, had just 242 yards as the second-leading rusher. They welcome back Samaje Perine to compete for the primary backup slot in 2025 after he left the Bengals to spend the 2023 season with Denver and 2024 with Kansas City. The 4th-round pick by Washington in the 2017 NFL Draft out of Oklahoma has never topped his rookie season of 603 yards, and he has just 9 career rushing touchdowns.

The 2025 draft saw Cincinnati take 2 offensive linemen and 3 defensive players before using their 6th and final pick to select a running back when they took Tahj Brooks out of Texas Tech. The Bengals hope he will also mount a challenge to Moss and Perine, and work out better than their 2019 6th-round draft pick, Trayveon Williams, who signed with New England as a free agent in May.

On defense, Cincinnati ranked 25th a year ago after allowing 348.3 yards per game over-all. They were 21st versus the pass and 19th in stopping the run. Those numbers led to the front office opting to jettison Lou Anarumo and the Colts signed him as their DC in January. Anarumo was the defensive coordinator of the Cincinnati team that went all the way to Super Bowl LVI where the Bengals lost 23-20 to the Los Angeles Rams. To replace him, they plucked Al Golden away from a Notre Dame team that had just lost to Ohio State in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game. Golden was Cincinnati's linebacker coach in 2020 and 2021 under Anarumo.

Cornerback DJ Turner was having a strong season before a broken clavicle in week 11 caused him to miss the rest of the season. Defensive end Trey Hendrickson had a second straight season of 17.5 sacks and set personal bests for combined tackles (46), solo tackles (33), and passes defended (6).

The Bengals used their first draft pick (17th overall) to select Edge rusher Shemar Stewart of Texas A&M, and he could be a strong compliment to Hendrickson.

They added a pair of linebackers with their second and fourth picks, selecting Demetrius Knight, Jr. out of South Carolina with their second round pick (49 overall) and then chose Barret Carter of Clemson in the 4th round (119 overall).

Cincinnati sought to galvanize the offensive line with their picks of guard Dylan Fairchild of Georgia (round 3, pick 81) and tackle Jalen Rivers of the Miami Hurricanes (round 5, pick 153).

2025 Cincinnati Bengals at-a-glance

2025 Records: 9-8 regular season, 3-3 vs. AFC North, 6-6 vs. AFC, 3-2 vs. NFC
2025 Super Bowl FanDuel odds: +2200, tied No. 9 of all 32 teams (No. 4 of 16 AFC teams)
2025 AFC North Champion odds: +250, No.2 of 4
General Manager: Duke Tobin, de facto (1999), officially titled Director of Player Personnel
Head Coach: Zac Taylor (2019)
Offensive Coordinator: Dan Pitcher (2024)
Defensive Coordinator: Al Golden (2025)

Zac Taylor has been Cincinnati's head coach since 2019 and was just 2-14 in his first season, and 4-11-1 in his second. Then, despite a regular season mark of just 10-7, the Bengals went all the way to the Super Bowl where they fell, 23-20, to the Rams. A 12-4 campaign the following season was good enough for a second straight division title, but also ended with a 23-20 loss -- this time to Kansas City in the AFC Championship game as the Chiefs avenged their prior season's 27-24 overtime loss to Cincinnati. Taylor is now 51-54-1 after 6 seasons at the helm, including a 5-2 mark in the playoffs..

Dan Pitcher will be in his 10th with the Bengals' organization. He came onboard as an offensive assistant in 2016 under Marvin Lewis and was retained by Taylor as the assistant QB coach. He was named QB coach in 2020 and OC in 2024.

2025 Schedule

Sharp Football Analysis ranks the 2025 Cincinnati schedule firmly in the middle of the pack.

The schedule opens with a grudge match on the road against Cleveland, and it will end with the Browns visiting Cincinnati. These teams also opened, and closed, the 2023 season against each other with the Browns taking a 24-3 win in Cleveland. The Bengals returned the favor with a 31-14 win at home in the season finale. Cincinnati won both meetings last year and have now taken 3 straight from their state rival.

The Bengals won't have another divisional matchup until week 7 when they host the Steelers on Thursday Night Football, and the remaining AFC North games come in weeks 11, 14, 16 and 18.

Their NFC crossover division this year is the NFL North with the Vikings (week 3) and Bears (week 9) coming to Paycor Stadium, and the Bengals visiting the Lions in week 5 and Lambeau Field for the Packers in week 6

They will also take on the AFC East division teams (Bills, Dolphins, Jets and Patriots).

9/7 at Browns
9/14 Jaguars
9/21 at Vikings
9/29 at Broncos (MNF)
10/5 Lions
10/12 at Packers
10/16 Steelers (TNF)
10/26 Jets
11/2 Bears
11/9 BYE
11/16 at Steelers
11/23 Patriots
11/27 at Ravens (Thanksgiving)
12/7 at Bills
12/14 Ravens
12/21 at Dolphins (SNF)
12/28 Cardinals
1/2, 1/5 or 1/6 Browns

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