No. 3 – Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals are one of three AFC teams with big questions at quarterback entering the playoffs. After Andy Dalton was injured in a Week 14 loss to the Steelers, A.J. McCarron has gone 2-1, beating the 49ers and Ravens, losing to the Broncos in overtime in Denver.
McCarron hasn’t been asked to do much, having passed for no more than 186 yards in any of his starts, but he hasn’t needed to. Cincinnati’s suffocating defense is doing enough to keep games close and their 18 rushing touchdowns this season are putting points on the board regardless of who’s under center. The Bengals rank behind only the Chiefs (19) in rushing TDs on the year. They rank second in points allowed at just 17.4 per game.
The biggest challenge the Bengals may have at the No. 3 seed is mental. This year will mark their fifth consecutive trip to the playoffs and sixth in seven years. They have yet to win a playoff game in that time. They get the Steelers at home, with a potential date in New England to follow. The Bengals and Steelers split during the season, with each team winning on the road.
It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that this is the year the Bengals get over the hump (fool me six times shame on Marvin Lewis?), but facing the playoff-tested Steelers and two-time Super Bowl champion Ben Roethlisberger to start this year’s run seems like a tall order.
If McCarron can continue to manage the game and the defense remains stout, there’s a good chance they’re headed to Foxborough, as the Steelers without DeAngelo Williams are beatable.
