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After one week of the NFL season, ESPN’s Adam Schefter is firmly putting the Cincinnati Bengals in a group of AFC teams he believes will be in it until the very end.
Nov 21, 2022; Mexico City, MEX; Broadcaster Adam Schefter of ESPN’s Monday Night Football Countdown is seen on the sideline prior to the NFL International Series game between the Arizona Cardinals and the San Francisco 49ers at Estadio Azteca.
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
After one week of the NFL season, ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter is firmly putting the Cincinnati Bengals in a group of AFC teams he believes will be in it until the very end.
During the latest episode of the Adam Schefter Podcast, the NFL insider listed the Bengals among the teams he thinks will become the major players for representing the conference in the Super Bowl.
“I just keep coming back to this, okay? We got the Chiefs and [Patrick] Mahomes, the Bills and [Josh] Allen, the Ravens and Lamar [Jackson], and the Bengals and Joe Burrow,” Schefter said. “I’m just telling you, I see it already. I see it already. It’s one week, but it is not too early to say with those quarterbacks and those teams, we’re going to be seeing those teams plenty this season. We’re going to be talking about those teams plenty this season.
“I’m just telling you, it seems pretty apparent where this is going.”
Bengals are rejoining fellow AFC powers after down year
The Bengals made a definite impression this past week during their victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Schefter knows they can not be discounted with Burrow back in the fold, and a revamped defense capable of carrying its weight.
It took one week for belief in the Bengals to be restored, and they have reclaimed a spot next to the other powerhouses in the conference.
After a losing season in which Burrow missed half of the year due to injury, Cincinnati was on the verge of being out of the conversation. The 29-year-old didn’t play his best on Sunday, but the team around looks much better and there’s much more belief in him playing up to his standard for the rest of the year.
Burrow is accustomed to being tightly linked with Allen, Jackson and Mahomes. They’ve become the faces of the AFC, and each of them have played in at least one conference championship. They’re the biggest reasons why all of their teams, like Schefter believes, can get to Super Bowl LXI in February.
A soft reset for Burrow and his elite contemporaries
It’s been three years since Burrow and the Bengals have made the playoffs. It was exactly a year ago when the Bengals lost Burrow to his turf toe injury in the second week of the 2025 season. When tough times were persisting in the Queen City, Jackson’s Ravens and Mahomes’ Chiefs were also watching the tournament from home. Both QBs dealt with injuries along with Burrow at some point during the year. Allen was the only one to make it to January, and he was eliminated before he even reached the AFC title game.
Last year was chaotic, and Patriots QB Drake Maye nearly capitalized on it all. Allen, Burrow, Jackson, and Mahomes have all gotten off on the right foot to start the new season. Allen, and Jackson are leading teams with new coaches this year. Burrow and Mahomes are looking to come back from injury-defined seasons.
I think Schefter’s message is appropriate right now. The entire NFL knows Burrow and his contemporaries are fully back and ready to do damage. An improved roster around him gives Burrow a real chance to prove him right.
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