Last season Cincinnati saw a miraculous run for the Bengals where they made the Super Bowl 56.
Joe Barrow, Jamar Chase, and Joe Mixon led the Bengals offense last season, pushing them into the Super Bowl.
However, even with Cincinnati playing last season, they are nowhere near the top of the Super Bowl favorites.
Surprisingly, looking at the favorites to win the Super Bowl 57, they are below the Cleveland Browns.
So why aren’t Bengalis the top favorites with their talent?
Vegas has not yet been sold in Bengal
When people look at adversity to win the Super Bowl, they look at Vegas.
Vegas doesn’t believe Cincinnati can repeat their Super Bowl run.
They could be seen as a flash in their pan and their presence at last year’s Super Bowl was a fluke.
However, Cincinnati has taken a step to improve their team, especially on the offensive line.
Sacks were a huge problem for Bengalis last season.
The Bengals offensive line allowed 55 sacks last season, the third-highest in the NFL.
Burroughs was at the bottom of 51 of those sacks during last season’s Super Bowl run.
# বাংলা QB Joe Barrow has been sacked 51 NFL-highs this season. There were 55 players who were dismissed 50+ times in one season. No one reached the Super Bowl. So far.
– Ed Werder (WerderEdESPN) January 30, 2022
But adding Ben Brown, Lyle Collins and Alex Capa could help them reduce the total.
However, with the Sports Report or their Super Bowl outlook from Vegas it did not yield meaningful results.
Towards the end of Super Bowl 56, something related to Barrow happened.
Joe Barrow splits his MCL during Super Bowl 56
Anyone who has followed Burroughs in his rookie season remembers how he broke his ACL and MCL.
After returning and sending his team to the Super Bowl, he suffered a MCL sprain during the Super Bowl.
Coach Jack Taylor told reporters it was the best thing for Joe Barrow to rest on an MCL sprain. https://t.co/Ryr8FXBZNo
– Ian Reports (apRapSheet) February 16, 2022
While the sprain doesn’t mean he needs surgery, it could be a concern for those looking for Cincinnati’s Super Bowl prospects.
This is the second time in the NFL 2021-22 season that Barrow’s MCL has been sprained.
The first such incident took place in December, just before the Bengals won their division.
With his previous injuries, and his history of taking a lot of sacks, this could be a major reason for suspicion with Cincinnati.
However, there is one last thing that could push them as a Super Bowl favorite.
Most AFC teams have spent the 2022 offseason building their teams
The AFC-favorite Buffalo Bills went out and got some key weapons on offense and defense to help them this season.
Despite losing some key players this season, the Kansas City Chiffers are still the favorites over the Bengals.
However, other teams such as the Los Angeles Chargers, the Browns and the Denver Broncos have taken steps to help their chances of reaching the Super Bowl.
With so many teams improving in the AFC, the Bengals made it easy to ignore them as they made it to the Super Bowl 56.
Cincinnati should not be closed because other teams have improved.
If their new offensive line can protect their young quarterbacks, they should easily return to the Super Bowl.