San Francisco 49ers-Cincinnati Bengals
USA - NFL
29/10/2023 - 21:25 CET
Two weeks ago, everyone was talking about the San Francisco 49ers as the undisputed best team in the NFL. Then, two losses happened, and the narrative shifted a bit. First, they lost to the Cleveland Browns when their rookie kicker, Jake Moody, missed a relatively easy field goal for the win. This was followed by a shocking loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night, where everything went wrong for the 49ers. However, these losses can't change some facts. Kyle Shanahan is the NFL's greatest offensive mind, the 49ers have one of the top three defenses in the league, Christian McCaffrey is an elite running back, and players like George Kittle and Brandon Aiyuk can always make a difference with their skills. The only problem might be that quarterback Brock Purdy could miss this game due to being in the concussion protocol, but his backup, Sam Darnold, can step in and replace him. In recent years, we've learned that Shanahan can make any quarterback better than they are, and Darnold entered the league with much more potential than Purdy.
It's extremely difficult to assess the Cincinnati Bengals this season and draw realistic conclusions about their capabilities. In the last two seasons, they reached the Super Bowl and the conference finals. They entered this year with high aspirations, but a 3-3 record is even better than their performance suggests. Before the bye week, they defeated the Seattle Seahawks by 17:13, even though they were the weaker team on the field. They struggled in their win over the Los Angeles Rams as well, while the Cleveland Browns and Tennessee Titans defeated them soundly. It's true that the quarterback and superstar of this team, Joe Burrow, has been dealing with a calf injury from the start of the season, but that's not the only reason for the Bengals' underwhelming performances. Their offensive line is not elite, Joe Mixon isn't performing as well as in previous years, and the wide receivers are not living up to their reputation. It's possible that everything could click at some point, and the Bengals play at their best, but we haven't seen that yet in six games.
Even if Purdy doesn't play, the San Francisco 49ers are the clear favorites. The Cincinnati Bengals' defense has improved in recent weeks, but it won't be able to slow down the running game and short passes to McCaffrey. On the other hand, the 49ers' defense is more than capable of making life difficult for Burrow and the Bengals' offense. Just three weeks ago, the 49ers humiliated the Dallas Cowboys by 42:10 at Levi's Stadium, and the Cowboys are a better team than the Bengals. After two tough losses, the 49ers need to show a strong reaction because nothing will satisfy them except winning the Super Bowl. Being the top team in the conference is of great importance since we've seen how challenging it is to beat the Philadelphia Eagles on their turf in January. The 49ers don't want to go down that path again, and to prevent that, there is no room for failure.