Strictly Stripes: A Cincinnati Bengals podcast

The Bengals last five playoff games dating back to last season have been decided within a touchdown or field goal. After surviving an upset-minded Ravens team in the wild card round last weekend, 24-17, Cincinnati heads to Buffalo to face a Bills team that survived a similarly upset-minded Dolphins team led by third-string quarterback Skylar Thompson, 34-31. Never mind the fact the Bills are No. 2...

The Bengals and Bills will both be bleeding red this weekend. Why the color red? Because both teams will give their best efforts on both sides of the ball inside their respective 20-yard lines, aka, the red zone. If the adage "defense wins championships" has any merit, the Bengals proved that in their wild card win over the Ravens last weekend thanks to Sam Hubbard's fumble return that will foreve...

Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a record he'd rather forget about. Almost exactly a year ago, Burrow was sacked an NFL-record nine times in last year's divisional playoff victory at Tennessee. Although the Bengals won that game on a walk-off field goal, Cincinnati barely hung on for the win as those nine sacks were just some of the league-leading 70 times Burrow was sacked last season. Althoug...

The Bengals survived one of the strangest and most intriguing wild card matchups over the weekend. After watching their win over the Ravens come down to the very last play of regulation, Cincinnati has to quickly turn the page and plan for the Bills. Buffalo also survived a wacky wild card game just hours before the Bengals' win. There's a lot that's different between planning for the divisional a...

Deja vu. After last year's wild card over the Raiders came down to the final play of the game, the Cincinnati Bengals open this year's postseason with a win over the Baltimore Ravens in very similar fashion. There was no interception from Germaine Pratt to seal the deal (although there almost was), but the Ravens were one Hail Mary away from potentially sending the game to overtime and nearly knoc...

The playoffs are back in Cincinnati. Exactly one year removed from their historic wild card win over the Las Vegas Raiders, the Cincinnati Bengals host a playoff game once again this weekend when the Baltimore Ravens come into town on Sunday night. This marks the first time both of these divisional foes have ever met in the postseason." Third times the charm, right? These teams are a week removed...

The Cincinnati Bengals rush offense hasn't seen much efficiency lately. A pass heavy team that has leaned in on quarterback Joe Burrow's passing glamour, the Bengals haven't witnessed much efficiency from their run game. After Bengals' running backs Joe Mixon and Samaje Perine respectively bounced back in the middle of the season with respective top-notch performances, those seem like a distant me...

No matter who's under center for the Ravens this weekend, the Cincinnati Bengals are coming prepared. After Ravens starting QB Lamar Jackson didn't practice with the Ravens on Wednesday, there's doubt the former MVP will start in Sunday night's wild card game in Cincinnati. Compounded by the fact that backup Tyler Huntley might be questionable for this weekend, that leaves Baltimore's QB situation...

A Cincinnati Bengals offensive line that stayed fairly healthy all season has caught the injury bug. After losing right guard Alex Cappa in Sunday's regular season finale victory over Baltimore, the Bengals could now be without two of their offensive line starters this week. Right tackle La'el Collins is already out for the rest of the year on the injured reserve after tearing his ACL against New...

The Cincinnati Bengals are celebrating. After holding off against a feisty Baltimore Ravens squad that wanted to play spoiler on Sunday, the Bengals wouldn't let anyone spoil their AFC North crown. Cincinnati wins back-to-back division titles for the first time in franchise history with their 27-16 win over Baltimore. Instead of having to flip a coin to determine home field for next week's wild ca...

The Cincinnati Bengals are fizzing with frustration after the NFL's latest decision on the upcoming playoffs. After the league officially cancelled the Bengals-Bills game this week, they confirmed what the playoff implications for the AFC would look like after reaching an agreement. However, that has Bengals head coach Zac Taylor and most of the team frustrated and dissatisfied with a resolution t...

The future has become a little clearer for the Cincinnati Bengals as they move forward with the end of the regular season. They know they will not finish their Week 17 game with the Buffalo Bills that was cancelled after Damar Hamlin's medical emergency postponed the game. What they don't know exactly, though, is how the playoff picture will look based on the inequities that result from the cancel...

The last 48 hours have been a whirlwind for the Cincinnati Bengals. After Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field during Monday night's game at Paycor Stadium, there was lots of uncertainty surrounding his condition, the status of the game and what was to come all in that moment. Both the Bills and Bengals were left confused in what was described as chaos by Bengals quarterback Jo...

The final Monday Night Football game of the season is shaping up to be a good one. AFC supremacy is on the line in Cincinnati when the six-game win streak-riding Bills battle the Bengals who are hoping to get their franchise-record eighth straight win. Depending on what happens between Baltimore and Pittsburgh in prime-time on Sunday night, the Bengals could even clinch the AFC North on Monday. Th...

As the weeks pass, the challenges only rise even higher for the Cincinnati Bengals. Maybe that's why Josh Allen and the top-seeded Buffalo Bills coming to town is only fitting for the final Monday Night Football matchup of the year. Allen, who was the preseason favorite for MVP entering this season, is still in the mix for potentially beating out Patrick Mahomes and Joe Burrow depending on how Mon...

The Bengals' receiving corps will have to face yet another challenging secondary under the bright lights of prime-time. After playing away from home for over two weeks, the Bengals welcome the Buffalo Bills to Cincinnati for Monday Night Football this week. It's the first Monday night game in Cincinnati in over two seasons. There will be multiple challenges for the Bengals on both sides of the bal...

The streak is over. After playing every game this season with the same offensive line starters, the Cincinnati Bengals' front has taken a big hit. Right tackle La'el Collins is out for the foreseeable future. That means the Bengals will put their trust in swing tackle and three-year pro Hakeem Adeniji. Adeniji, who's played multiple positions on the line, will have some big shoes to fill as the Be...

Live by the comeback, die by the comeback. After overcoming a 17-0 deficit against Tampa Bay last weekend, the Bengals nearly watched their 22-0 lead dwindle away against the Patriots in New England on Saturday. Thanks to a strong defensive stand late in the game though, the Bengals leave Foxborough with a 22-18 thrilling victory for their seventh straight win. Saturday's game truly was a tale of...

The temperature is dropping in Cincinnati, but Paycor Stadium is getting hotter and hotter. After the Jets fell to the Jaguars on Thursday night, the Bengals clinched a playoff spot by virtue of that loss. Sitting at 10-4, they control their own destiny for the AFC North and even a top-two seed in the AFC, mirroring a run the Bengals haven't seen since they made five straight playoff appearance in...

Don't let the New England Patriots' 7-7 record fool you. They're still alive in the playoff race and have a chance to secure a Wild Card spot in the playoffs with three games left this season. That will make Saturday's game against the Bengals a much feistier game as the Patriots try to avoid missing the playoffs for only the fourth time during head coach Bill Belichick's tenure. Cincinnati will b...

Another week, another tough pass rush defense awaits the Bengals. This weekend, the Bengals will face the New England Patriots and their two talented edge rushers: Matthew Judon and Josh Uche. Judon is playing at a Pro Bowl level as he has been for over the last three seasons. New England also boasts a top-10 ranked defenses which is due in part to that front. They're led by one of the greatest he...

A win is a win. No, that was not the prettiest win the Bengals had against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday evening. That's certainly not how the Bengals thought that game would from the first snap. Down 17-0 to the one of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time before halftime, Tom Brady, the Bengals were seemingly let him do whatever he wanted. Bengals QB Joe Burrow was playing one of his poores...

The warm weather will be fitting for Sunday's matchup in Tampa Bay. Cincinnati, riding a five-game win streak, will bring the heat to sunny Florida as the Bengals look for their first six-game win streak since their 8-0 start back in 2015. The Tom Brady-led Buccaneers, meanwhile, are hoping to get back to .500 as they are somehow sitting at 1st place in the NFC South at 6-7. Both teams will have h...

The Cincinnati Bengals defense may have to adjust without some key stars this weekend against the Buccaneers. Defensive end Trey Hendrickson hasn't practiced all week with a wrist injury that could sideline him this Sunday. Nickel cornerbacks Mike Hilton and Jalen Davis also haven't practiced all week either. Davis is nursing a thumb injury and Hilton is battling knee issues. That means that edge...

Two worlds will collide in Tampa Bay on Sunday. Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady, considered the greatest at this position, will duel off against Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. Although Burrow has a long way to go before catching up to Brady's legendary accolades, Burrow seems poised to be on a successful trajectory. Sunday's matchup between the two would be the first and may...