The Cincinnati Bengals got to kick back on the bye week and watch the rest of the AFC North duke it out.
In the aftermath of that, the Bengals sit at 3-2 and last in the AFC North, while every other team in the division boasts a 4-2 record.
But there are some caveats there.
The Baltimore Ravens lost to the Cleveland Browns. That means the Bengals get a chance next week to leapfrog the Ravens in the standings and send them to 0-2 in the AFC North. Those Ravens could be without Lamar Jackson.
And yes, the Pittsburgh Steelers are 4-2, but they needed overtime to slip past the 1-5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. The Bengals get another shot at them to prove the Week 3, three-point loss was a fluke.
As for the Cleveland Browns, while they’re 4-2, they beat that bad Bucs team, the struggling Steelers and the 3-2 Carolina Panthers before the Lamar Jackson-less Ravens. The Bengals get shots at them twice (Week 13 and 18).
So yes, the Bengals would’ve liked to have a better record at the bye. But at the break, they’re still in full control of where things go from here with plenty of chances to seize the division.
This article originally appeared on Bengals Wire: Bengals’ updated AFC North outlook after bye-week chaos