The Bengals are sitting at 4-2, and that record has them in position to keep building on a solid start. Their offseason work has already patched some obvious holes, and now the next step is getting the offense fully rolling again after that explosive half against the Ravens in Week 7.
But Cincinnati can’t afford to get comfortable. In this league, standing still is how good teams get passed by. With the deadline in view, the Bengals should be looking for ways to strengthen the roster, especially if the Philadelphia Eagles decide to move pieces after Jalen Hurts’ SVT diagnosis ended his season and a 38-21 loss to the Cowboys on Monday Night Football.
Zack Baun would make sense as a linebacker upgrade. Demetrius Knight Jr and Barrett Carter have taken a real step forward after a rough year last season, but the position group still has its weak spots, and Oren Burks hasn’t given Cincinnati much help.
Baun would give the Bengals a proven third linebacker, improve the defense overall, and let Knight and Carter keep developing without carrying so much of the load. His veteran presence and championship pedigree would also bring value to a unit that could use both.
Saquon Barkley is the eye-catching name, and the Bengals are likely to at least explore it. Running back has been a problem area, with Chase Brown’s explosiveness fading and Samaje Perine still best suited to pass protection duties.
Cincinnati is already tied to the Jonathan Taylor sweepstakes, which tells you how serious the need is. Barkley comes with some risk because of his injuries and age, but for a shorter-term swing, he offers more upside than most backs on the market.
In a Bengals offense that can light up a defense, he could help get himself right again too.
Riq Woolen is the most direct answer for the secondary. DJ Turner has been excellent, and Bryan Cook has steadied the safety spot, but the second cornerback role is still unsettled.
Dax Hill has flashed, yet he’s been pushed back into the slot with Jalen Davis on IR. Davis is also on an expiring contract, which only adds to the uncertainty.
Woolen, who was just acquired by the Eagles and is on a one-year deal, gives Cincinnati a clean solution: Hill can settle into the nickel role, and the Bengals get another man-to-man corner to line up opposite Turner.
In Other News...
Bengals Just Gained A Real AFC North Edge Over Pittsburgh
The Bengals win over the Ravens did more than bump Cincinnati to 4-2, it also strengthened the feeling that this team has a real path in the AFC North. A strength-of-schedule breakdown from Computer Cowboy on Twitter points to one of the more favorable remaining slates in the league for 2026, which helps explain why the Bengals are drawing plenty of attention as a playoff team with division-title upside.
November is where that edge starts to take shape on the field, with a run of games that should tell a lot about how sturdy Cincinnatis position really is. The Bengals still have to handle the week-to-week grind, but the combination of their early record and the schedule in front of them has them sitting in a better spot than most of their division competition right now. [Read more 🡒]
Bengals Just Raised A Franchise-Altering Question After Crushing Baltimore
For one half, it looked like Cincinnati was staring at the same familiar problems. Then the Bengals flipped the game on Baltimore completely, rolling to a 35-13 win that suddenly gives this season a different feel. The offense did not find the end zone before halftime, but once the second half began, Joe Burrow and company turned the matchup into a showcase, and the defense matched it by keeping the Ravens out of rhythm and limiting them to 13 points.
Burrow finished with four touchdown passes, and the pass rush added four sacks as Cincinnati put together its most convincing performance of the year. It was also the kind of result that changes the conversation around a team, especially with the Bengals now riding a two-game winning streak and owning a plus-41 point margin on the season. After a start that left plenty of questions, the bigger issue now is what this version of Cincinnati might look like if it keeps showing up. [Read more 🡒]
Joe Burrow Just Turned The Bengals Into An MVP Watch Team
Joe Burrow and the Bengals came out of Week 7 looking much more like the kind of team that can hang around the AFC race than the one that stumbled through stretches earlier in the year. Cincinnatis 35-13 win over Baltimore was not just a divisional statement, it was another reminder that when Burrow is locked in, the offense can look every bit like one of the leagues most dangerous units. The victory gave the Bengals a marquee result against a Ravens team that had been one of their measuring sticks, and it came with Burrow steering a second-half surge that strengthened his case in the NFLs award conversation.
Burrows MVP buzz is no longer just a byproduct of big-name recognition. He has climbed into the thicker part of the race, and the next stretch of games will go a long way toward showing whether this is a real push or just an early-season spike. The competition at the top is crowded, which means every efficient outing and every win matters even more for Cincinnati, especially if Burrow keeps pairing production with results in games that carry real weight. [Read more 🡒]