Jayden Daniels’s breakout performance Monday night made the Cincinnati Bengals an afterthought, which might be fitting considering all the hype this team has had the past few seasons without much to show for it.
The Bengals being 0–3 is a big surprise for those who expected them to contend for a Super Bowl this year. But maybe the masses shouldn’t be shocked about Cincinnati losing to Daniels and the Washington Commanders. This team did lose to the New England Patriots to start the season.
It’s time to look deeper at the Bengals’ issues, because their star quarterback may not be enough to save them from their latest slow start.
As for the Las Vegas Raiders, they might need to bench a few key players to get their season back on track. Coach Antonio Pierce boldly called out his team after Las Vegas’s embarrassing home loss to the Carolina Panthers.
Let’s take a look at the Bengals’ and Raiders’ chaotic starts to open this week’s “Fact or Fiction.” And don’t you worry, undefeated Seattle Seahawks—we will acknowledge you, despite the lack of quality wins.
The Bengals are the most overrated team in the NFL
Manzano’s view: Fact
It’s time to stop crowning the Bengals for beating the Kansas City Chiefs once.
Yes, that doesn’t summarize how monumental that victory was, but the purpose of this section is to convince the football public to forget about what the Bengals did on Jan. 30, 2022. Many believe the Bengals will consistently be as good as they were during the ’21 playoffs.
I’m not here to diminish the Bengals’ memorable playoff victory, because only that team can say they beat Patrick Mahomes in the postseason without Tom Brady on their side. And they probably would have won Super Bowl LVI if Aaron Donald hadn’t blown up a crucial play late in the game. It was a special season in Cincinnati, but it’s time to move on.
The Bengals will be in the playoff mix most seasons as long as they have Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase, who needs a contract extension. But they’re far from being legitimate Super Bowl contenders and haven’t appeared that way since the 2022 season.
Hopefully, we can stop giving the Bengals the benefit of the doubt for beating the Chiefs once, because this year’s squad has a laundry list of issues. If they’re going to climb out of this hole, Cincinnati needs to run the ball better and improve a defensive unit that has struggled for more than a season.
Maybe cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt will do less talking until his team wins a game this season.
Raiders coach needs to back up business decisions comment
Manzano’s view: Fact
Pierce can’t be all talk after boldly saying he plans to make “business decisions” on the players who checked out early from Sunday’s blowout loss to the Panthers.
To start the week, Pierce said he hadn’t made those “business decisions,” but added that he did not regret his words, saying “I don’t bite my tongue.”
It sounds like Pierce isn’t backing down from his comments, with possible changes coming in the near future. And hopefully, it’s not just a quarterback switch, because Gardner Minshew II wasn’t the reason Pierce’s side got embarrassed at home against a team that lost by an average of 30 points in the first two games of the season.
If a few key players aren’t benched or disciplined in some way, Pierce might begin to lose the locker room early in his first full season as head coach. A response is even more important considering stars such as Davante Adams also took notice of those players who mailed it during the beat down in Las Vegas. All eyes will be on Pierce before the Raiders host the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
Undefeated Seahawks are favorites to win NFC West
Manzano’s view: Fiction
It’s tough to gauge the 3–0 Seahawks because of a somewhat easy schedule to start the season. Still, plenty of credit should be given to new coach Mike Macdonald for having his team prepared in a year filled with early upsets.
In Week 2, the Seahawks won on the road against the Patriots, who beat the Bengals in Week 1. They also won their season opener vs. the Denver Broncos, who just pulled off a road upset against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. So let’s not fully diminish the Seahawks’ wins, but maybe don’t give them full credit for the home victory vs. the Miami Dolphins, who started Skylar Thompson in place of the injured Tua Tagovailoa.
There’s plenty to like about Seattle, which continues to get better each week on both sides of the football. DK Metcalf has been on a tear, recording back-to-back games of at least 100 receiving yards and one touchdown. Second-year running back Zach Charbonnet has played well in the absence of Kenneth Walker III. And the defense continues to swarm opposing quarterbacks, generating six sacks against Miami.
Macdonald’s team will get an opportunity to add a quality win to its résumé because next on the schedule is a Monday night road matchup against the Detroit Lions. If the Seahawks win that one, then perhaps they’ll have the look of a true contender in the NFC West, while the 49ers (1–2) and Rams (1–2) continue to be hampered by injuries.
Titans should declare themselves “sellers” for trade deadline
Manzano’s view: Fiction
It’s way too soon for the winless Tennessee Titans to consider trading the quality players they added only a few months ago. Obviously, they didn’t anticipate this poor start with all the money the team spent in free agency, including lucrative contracts to Calvin Ridley, L’Jarius Sneed, Tony Pollard and Lloyd Cushenberry III.
The biggest issue holding this team back is quarterback Will Levis and his eight total turnovers, including three in last week’s ugly loss to the Green Bay Packers. Levis, a 2023 second-round pick, might need to be benched before the Titans begin to consider giving up on this season. Behind him on the depth chart is Mason Rudolph, who does have NFL starting experience. If they do become sellers, it might be best to ship out players not in the long-term plans, such as DeAndre Hopkins, to give this team hope for next season.
And maybe it’s not the worst idea to ride it out with Levis for the rest of the season. If Levis continues to struggle, the Titans could position themselves well for a top pick in the 2025 draft to possibly draft his replacement. But new coach Brian Callahan may have to wait a year to fully implement his offense and would risk losing the veteran-filled locker room if the Titans don’t at least try changing quarterbacks. Or maybe Levis will learn from his mistakes and the team’s patience prevails.
It’s an interesting dilemma brewing in Tennessee because it has a roster that’s prepared to compete now, maybe not as playoff contenders, but to at least flirt with a winning record. That won’t happen unless the quarterback play improves. Tough decisions loom for Callahan in his first season with the Titans.
Football pundits need to make more bold games picks
Manzano’s view: Fact
I’m fed up with seeing not-so-bold game picks on a weekly basis from my fellow football scribes. I will call myself out, too, because I picked the Bengals, Raiders and 49ers to win in Week 3, like most pundits did.
Enough is enough, because by now we should know the NFL isn’t that predictable. So I will make a business decision on myself and make more bold picks, even though I have a knack for picking the wrong underdogs. I am better, though, at making picks against the spread. So check out my weekly betting column, out on Thursdays. Plug, plug, plug.
And I wouldn’t be surprised if this is the week heavy favorites dominate.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as NFL Fact or Fiction: Bengals Are the Most Overrated NFL Team.