The Bengals weren’t always considered a heavyweight in the current NFL pantheon. For most of the 21st century, they were either a playoff paper tiger (no pun intended) or an outright laughingstock. Then Joe “Cool” Burrow came around and flipped the team’s fortunes virtually overnight as they made a surprise Cinderella run to Super Bowl 56.
A year later, Cincinnati has some new company in the “does the glass slipper fit?” ranks in the form of the Miami Dolphins. During an undefeated 3-0 start, Miami has looked terrific. New head coach Mike McDaniel is pushing all the right buttons and Tua Tagovailoa looks like the franchise quarterback he was drafted to become. And with wins over the Ravens and Bills (that, yes, did involve a bit of luck) — Miami can boast that it’s undoubtedly beaten “legitimate” squads.
But is it sustainable in the long run? And will the Dolphins and Tagovailoa be able to upend Burrow’s Bengals and take a firm pole position as the NFL’s new darlings?
We’re about to get an answer in an oh-so-fitting matchup between the two new AFC powers on Thursday Night Football tonight.
Before this pair and some of their more prominent names settle their differences, it’s worth noting Miami is following essentially the same template as last year’s/this year’s Bengals. They gave their young quarterback weapons and downfield security blankets to help elevate their play.
After the near entirety of Burrow’s rookie 2020 campaign was lost due to a knee injury, the Bengals went out and got him one of the most explosive receivers in pro football — Ja’Marr Chase. The young wideout would join a suddenly gifted supporting cast featuring Tee Higgins and Joe Mixon. While Burrow still hit the deck, er, turf more often than Cincinnati would prefer (it’s a problem that hasn’t gone away), he clicked with his new best friends on offense en route to an AFC title and a Comeback Player of the Year Award.
Miami pulled off the same strategy for Tagovailoa this offseason. Many in NFL circles have long wondered whether the former Alabama product had the arm strength to survive as a pro and legitimate field-tilting quarterback. It doesn’t seem like the Dolphins had those same concerns. And so the South Beach higher-ups went out and pulled off a blockbuster trade for Tyreek Hill. They added him alongside Tagovailoa’s former Crimson Tide teammate, Jaylen Waddle. The two playmakers are now both in the top three in the NFL in receiving yards. Most importantly, it doesn’t seem like defenses have an answer for two options that can take the top off the field at any given moment.
As it turns out, the best way to determine whether your quarterback has “it” is by supporting them. And when they have help, they can turn your team into a contender. What a novel concept.
The Bengals and Burrow have struggled somewhat to start the year.
At 1-2, with plenty of season left (14 games!), they can more than get back on track with their high preseason expectations. But make no mistake: Tagovailoa’s Dolphins look revitalized. They know they haven’t been here, in the national spotlight, for a long time. There would be no better way to legitimize their upstart campaign than by knocking down last year’s darling a peg or three.
This brings up one final critical point about this Cincinnati-Miami Thursday night battle: The NFL’s glass slipper can only properly fit one team at a time.
The pick: Bengals 30, Dolphins 24
By the end of the year, I do think both of these squads are firmly in the AFC playoff picture. But for now, I like the battle-tested Bengals and Burrow, at home, better than a Dolphins squad that might be reading their newspaper clippings a bit too much after some huge wins.
