The Bengals are staring at a real path to the AFC’s No. 1 seed in 2026, and the setup around them is hard to ignore. They have what’s being labeled the easiest schedule in the NFL, including being the easiest on ESPN’s Football Power Index depending on the metric used, and that kind of runway can matter a lot if Cincinnati comes out fast.
FOX Sports writer Henry McKenna went even further, pegging the Bengals as his bold pick for the top seed in 2026. It’s not some wild long shot, either. Cincinnati currently sits with the eighth-best consensus betting odds to land No. 1 in the AFC at +820.
McKenna pointed to the team’s offseason work on defense as the big reason for the leap. The Bengals traded for three-time Pro Bowl tackle Dexter Lawrence and added DT Jonathan Allen, edge Boye Mafe and safety Bryan Cook in free agency. In McKenna’s view, that wasn’t just about fixing one side of the ball - it was about protecting Joe Burrow from the burden he’s carried for too long.
"They invested in their defense by trading for three-time Pro Bowl tackle Dexter Lawrence and signing DT Jonathan Allen, edge Boye Mafe and safety Bryan Cook in free agency," McKenna wrote. "And in a way, that was the Bengals investing in Joe Burrow - because he’s gotten killed trying to keep breakneck pace with his putrid defense (after years of getting killed behind his crappy offensive line).
"Now, it feels like the Bengals have finally turned a corner. They kept Burrow's weapons on offense.
They’ve built a half-decent offensive line. And simultaneously, they’ve invested in defensive playmakers.
It seems like Cincinnati might be excellent this year. It seems like Cincinnati can legitimately contend for a Super Bowl for the first time since … well, since the Bengals made the Super Bowl."
That kind of roster balance gives Cincinnati a legitimate shot to chase the one thing that changes everything in January: the top seed. Teams that grab it need only two wins to get to the Super Bowl, which is a massive advantage.
Burrow sounded ready for the challenge when he talked about the defense being at a championship level to go along with the offense.
"We have to step up and make something happen this year," Burrow said about the defense being at a championship level now along with the offense. "We're working really hard for it.
The urgency is very high in the locker room. You can feel it.
It's palpable. As I said, we have to be more consistent on offense.
Our standard is so high, but it's so high because of what we've done and what we can do, and so I'm going to continue to push that, and we're going to keep getting better and see where we're at Week 1. But I'm so excited for it."
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Bengals Took A Risk Joe Burrow Is Counting On
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Bengals Built This Roster To End One Criticism Around Burrow
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That criticism is exactly what Cincinnati tried to address this offseason as it started reshaping the roster for 2026. The Bengals made a major investment up front with Dexter Lawrence and also added help in Boye Mafe and Bryan Cook, moves designed to give the defense more punch, more speed and a better chance to back up Burrow instead of forcing him to carry everything again. [Read more 🡒]