​The Cincinnati Bengals haven’t played in the postseason since the 2022 season, and a 6-11 finish in 2025 marked three straight years outside the playoffs. Yet the club enters 2026 with genuine Super Bowl buzz. Optimism centers on fixes to a defense that allowed 28.9 points per game last season, the 30th-ranked unit in the league. In April, Cincinnati traded the No. 10 overall pick in the 2026 draft to the New York Giants for Dexter Lawrence, marking the franchise’s first draft-era move of a top-10 pick for a player, and signed the three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle to a one-year, $28 million extension. The front office continued spending in free agency, particularly on defense, luring edge rusher Boye Mafe to a three-year, $60 million deal and safety Bryan Cook to a three-year, $40.25 million contract on March 12, then adding defensive tackle Jonathan Allen on a two-year deal the following day. The notable departure was star edge rusher Trey Hendrickson, who signed a four-year, $112 million contract with the division-rival Baltimore Ravens.
Superstar quarterback Joe Burrow has taken note of the upgraded roster. At a May 20 press conference, the 29-year-old made his expectations clear: “I think this is the most talented roster that we’ve had since I’ve been here. We’re gonna go win a lot of games this year, and play great, and win a Super Bowl.” Burrow even projected that throwing 48 touchdown passes and setting a new Bengals single-season yardage mark was “doable,” while claiming the team’s current mix is the most talented he’s had in Cincinnati.
There is, however, one obstacle that offseason moves cannot fix: Burrow must stay healthy. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 draft has played in 35 of 51 possible regular-season games from 2023–25, with three of his six NFL seasons saw him sidelined for six games or more. A torn ACL and MCL in his left knee ended his rookie year; a torn ligament in his throwing wrist ended his 2023 season; and a Grade 3 turf toe suffered in a Week 2 win over Jacksonville cost him nine games in 2025. Burrow went 5-3 as the starter in 2025, while Cincinnati went 1-8 in the nine games he missed, six of which were started by Joe Flacco, the 41-year-old who the club acquired from Cleveland in October and re-signed to a one-year deal in late March.
Burrow’s career marks remain strong. He owns a 43-33-1 record as an NFL starter, and Cincinnati is 7-16 all-time without him. While a 9-8 finish in 2024 didn’t earn a playoff berth, Burrow led the league with 4,918 passing yards and 43 touchdown passes. In 2021, his second season, Cincinnati went 10-7, won the AFC, and reached Super Bowl LVI, where they fell 23-20 to the Rams. Even in eight games last season, he threw for 1,809 yards and 17 touchdowns.