The Cincinnati Bengals came into their Week 9 matchup coming off one of the most embarrassing losses in franchise history. Instead of facing the Bears with a 4-4 record and an opportunity to go into their bye with more wins than losses. Considering they’re without franchise quarterback Joe Burrow and the defense is still some kind of awful, that would have been nice.
Unfortunately, Al Golden’s defense decided it would be a good idea to let Justin Fields and the Jets put up 39 points, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory and handing the Jets their first win of the season.
In comes the 4-3 Chicago Bears, who are coming off a loss but have won four of their last five games, giving the Bengals an opportunity to at least go into their off week on a high note.
Here are the Bengals’ winners and losers from Week 9.
Tee Higgins: The thing about playing quarterback for the Bengals is that the best wide receiving duo in the NFL surrounds you. Ja’Marr Chase is the best receiver in the league, coming off a Triple Crown season, and Tee Higgins is the No. 1 receiver on almost every other team in the league. On Sunday, he not only finished with two scores, but he had two of the most incredible, acrobatic touchdown catches you’ll ever see in football. He also added a two-point conversion in garbage time.
Charlie Jones: Jones has been an afterthought in the Bengals’ offense, and that’s not indicative of his ability to play wide receiver in the league–the Bengals just have the most talented wide-receiver room in the NFL. He still found a way to make his presence known, though, by returning the game’s opening kickoff back 99 yards for a touchdown, giving the Bengals a 7-0 lead before either quarterback even took a snap.
Evan McPherson: The Bengals’ young kicker struggled in 2024, but, so far in 2025, he’s been pretty reliable. He was two for three on Sunday against the Bears and added three extra points, but, more significantly, one of those field goals was responsible for putting him in the 500-point club.
Congratulations, Money Mac!
He also pulled off a rare converted onside kick with less than two minutes left in the game and only down by six.
What about that miss at the end? It didn’t matter.
Betters Who Took The Over: The good thing about having a talented offense and a sub-par defense is that you can be sure to take the over. The over/under this week was 51.5. The Bears and Bengals hit that mark early in the second half.
Joe Flacco: Flacco wasn’t perfect on Sunday. He fumbled when he was sacked and he threw a costly pick-six, but he also finished the game with 457 passing yards, four touchdowns, and a two-point conversion. All this from a 40-year-old who came into the game with a bum shoulder.
This was Flacco’s first 400-yard game.
Bengals fans: The Bengals had a chance, after the high of defeating the Steelers on Thursday Night Football, to go into their bye week with a winning record. That would have been pretty miraculous considering the injury to Burrow and the defense. Instead, the Bengals gave up 80 points to the Jets and Bears in eight quarters.
The reality of the situation is this: The Bengals are better, and probably have a winning record with a healthy Burrow at this point in the season, but the Bengals aren’t contenders with him. They may not even be a playoff team. The front office did nothing to fix the terrible defense that kept them out of the playoffs in 2024, and Bengals fans deserve better.
Bengals’ Playoff Hopes: After their miraculous win over the Steelers, the Bengals were staring right at two winnable games vs. the Jets and Bears, potentially leaving them 5-4 heading into the bye week. Now, because they lost both games, the Bengals will come out of their bye with a brutal stretch on their schedule that includes games at Pittsburgh, vs. New England, at Buffalo, and two games against the surging Ravens.
The Bengals had their window, but the defense managed to keep it shut.
Joe Burrow: Had the Bengals won these two games, the Bengals would have had a great shot at making it to December with the playoffs still in reach, allowing Joe Burrow to make his return from toe surgery.
Sadly, that likely just went out the window, as it will be very difficult for the Bengals to still be in the playoff mix when Burrow is cleared to return, so don’t get your hopes up on seeing No. 9 suit up again this season.
Zac Taylor: If there’s a team that knows how to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, it’s the Bengals, and that’s a direct reflection of their head coach. Was there one call made that sunk the Bengals? Not really, but the ball just doesn’t bounce their way, and since a team makes its own luck, it’s on Taylor.
When a team constantly finds new and inventive ways to lose, it’s time for the head coach to go.
Al Golden: If Fields and the Jets are going to put up 39, you know Caleb Williams and the Bears, who have a much more talented offense than New York, were going to put up a lot of points.
The Bengals’ defense was completely unable to stop the run on Sunday. D’Andre Swift was out, and the Bears turned to backup Kyle Monangai and practice-squad running back Brittain Brown. The pair gained 215 yards on the ground, and the Bengals just seemed to have no answer.
Joe Flacco and the Bengals scored 42 points, and Golden’s defense still handed the team a big fat L.
Jordan Battle: While just about everyone deserves blame on defense, Jordan Battle continues to make some crushing gaffes in critical moments. It’s time for someone else, literally anyone else, to get playing time over him.
Shemar Stewart: Not only did the Bengals’ first-round pick struggle to make an impact in this one, but he left the game late in the second half with a knee injury and did not return. A disastrous rookie season for what looked like a potentially disastrous pick when it was made in April.
Orlando Brown Jr.: After looking like a Pro Bowl left tackle throughout the 2024 season and only giving up three sacks, Brown Jr. has struggled in 2025. In the fourth quarter, already trailing by four, Brown was bull rushed by Bears edge rusher Austin Booker, and was just tossed aside like it was me trying to protect Flacco’s blind side. Booker not only sacked Flacco, but he also punched the ball out, and the Bears recovered. Luckily, the defense was able to hold the Bears to a field goal to stay within one score.
Duke Tobin: It’s painfully evident that the Bengals’ scouting and draft process is broken, and Duke Tobin is the top man in that regard. While he made a great trade for Joe Flacco, it’s not enough to overcome all the failed draft picks the Bengals have had. It’s time for someone to answer for this.
Hope for Future: Now that the Bengals are 3-6, nearly all hope has been erased for what the rest of this season can produce. Not to mention the fact that this team’s ability to acquire and develop talent is clearly inept, leaving us to wonder what kind of hope there really is for this franchise moving forward.
Sure, Burrow will be back next season, and so too will Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. But they can’t play defense, and you need a good roster from top to bottom to contend for a Super Bowl. This team is clearly nowhere close to that, and it’s hard to see how that changes anytime soon.
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