Last season saw the Cincinnati Bengals have a miracle run where they made Super Bowl 56.
Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Joe Mixon led the Bengals offense during last season, pushing them into the Super Bowl.
However, even with the play of Cincinnati last season, they are not near the top of being Super Bowl favorites.
Shockingly, they are below the Cleveland Browns when looking at teams favored to win Super Bowl 57.
So why are the Bengals not top favorites with the talent they have on offense?
Vegas Isn’t Sold On The Bengals Just Yet
When people look at odds to win the Super Bowl, they look to Vegas.
Vegas doesn’t have faith that Cincinnati can repeat their Super Bowl run.
They might see them as a flash in the pan and that their appearance in last year’s Super Bowl was a fluke.
However, Cincinnati made a move to improve their team, especially at offensive line.
Sacks were an immense problem for the Bengals last season.
The Bengals offensive line allowed 55 sacks of Burrow last season, third-most in the NFL.
Burrow was on the end of 51 of those sacks during last season’s Super Bowl run.
#Bengals QB Joe Burrow was sacked an NFL-high 51 times this season. There were 55 players who have been sacked 50+ times in a season. None reached the Super Bowl. Until now.
— Ed Werder (@WerderEdESPN) January 30, 2022
But with the additions of Ben Brown, La’el Collins, and Alex Cappa, they might have some help to lower those totals.
However, it hasn’t gotten meaningful results with their Super Bowl outlook from sports reports or Vegas.
Near the end of the Super Bowl 56, something concerning with Burrow happened.
Joe Burrow Sprained His MCL During Super Bowl 56
Anyone that followed Burrow during his rookie season remembers how he tore his ACL and MCL.
After making a comeback and sending his team to the Super Bowl, he suffered an MCL sprain during the Super Bowl.
Coach Zac Taylor tells reporters it’s an MCL sprain, with rest being the best thing for Joe Burrow. https://t.co/Ryr8FXBZNo
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 16, 2022
While the sprain doesn’t mean he needs surgery, it could concern those looking at Cincinnati’s Super Bowl chances.
It was also the second time during the NFL 2021-22 season that Burrow suffered an MCL sprain.
The first time happened during a game in December, right before the Bengals clinched their division.
With his prior injury, along with his history of taking a lot of sacks, it could be a leading reason there are doubts with Cincinnati.
However, there’s one last thing that could push them out as a Super Bowl favorite.
Most AFC Teams Spent The 2022 Offseason Building Up Their Team
The AFC-favorite Buffalo Bills went out and got some key weapons on offense and defense to help them this season.
The Kansas City Chiefs are also still favored over the Bengals, despite losing some important players this season.
However, other teams like the Los Angeles Chargers, Browns, and Denver Broncos made moves to help their chances of reaching the Super Bowl.
With so many teams improving in the AFC, it makes it easy to overlook the Bengals after they just made it to Super Bowl 56.
Cincinnati shouldn’t be written off because the other teams made improvements.
If their new offensive line can protect their young quarterback, they should easily return to the talks of making the Super Bowl.
NEXT: Joe Burrow Is Already A Top Leader In The NFL