Not a typo: Bengals can still make playoffs after win over Titans

If the stars align, Cincinnati could still capture the final seed in the AFC playoffs. And the Bengals have two stars who are very much aligned.

Namely, after leading Cincinnati to a 37-27 win in Tennessee on Sunday, Joe Burrow leads the league in both passing yards (3,977) and touchdown passes (36). Ja’Marr Chase leads the NFL in receptions (102), receiving yards (1,413) and touchdown catches (15). In the league-merger era, no quarterback-receiver combo has finished the season leading the NFL in all five of those categories. Could those stars help the Bengals (6-8) win their final three games?

If so, strap in. According to John Breech from CBS, should Cincinnati win home contests against Cleveland and Denver, and upset the Steelers in Pittsburgh to finish the year, there’s a clear path to the postseason for the Bengals. Breech said either the Broncos or the Chargers would need to nosedive and drop their final three games. Those teams kick off Week 16 on Thursday Night Football at SoFi Stadium.

Then, Breech said, the Dolphins would need to drop just one of their final three (home against San Francisco followed by road games against the Browns and Jets). Finally, the Colts also would need to lose only one of their final three (home against Tennessee, on the road against the Giants and home against Jacksonville).

Burrow and Chase are showing no signs of cooling off. Chase is the fifth player in NFL history to reach 100 catches, 1,400 yards and 15 touchdowns in a season, joining Jerry Rice (1995), Marvin Harrison (2001), Randy Moss (2003) and Cooper Kupp (2021). Burrow, meanwhile, is the fifth quarterback all-time to pass for three touchdowns in six consecutive games, joining Dan Marino (seven from 1986-97), Peyton Manning (eight in 2004), Tom Brady (10 in 2007) and Andrew Luck (eight in 2018).

Chase didn’t reach the end zone on Sunday but he opened opportunities for teammates, including a 38-yard Tee Higgins touchdown in which the receiver stood in the face of contact to maintain possession on his way into the end zone. Defensive end Sam Hubbard also lined up as a goal-line tight end and caught a 2-yard touchdown, high-pointing the reception to tie the contest midway through the second quarter.

In order to win their final three games, they’ll need to continue to get takeaways like they did on Sunday in Nashville. Cam Taylor-Britt, Josh Newton, Mike Hilton and Geno Stone, who scored on a 39-yard return, each had interceptions. And Maema Njongmeta and Jordan Battle recovered Titans fumbles to help Cincinnati match a single-game franchise record with six takeaways, its most since Nov. 11, 2007.

For more information on the Bengals and Titans, visit the Cincinnati and Tennessee team pages at ProFootballPost.com.