The Cincinnati Bengals (5-4) have reached the midway point of their season and will enter the second-half of the season with a chance to control their own postseason destiny.
Bengals analysis: What we learned from Cincinnati's 41-16 loss to the Cleveland Browns
After starting the season with a 5-2 record that made them the No. 1 seed in the AFC, the Bengals are coming off a two-game losing skid. Here's a look at how Cincinnati stacks up against the rest of the NFL at this point of the season.
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Offense:
Total offense: No. 9
Points per game: No. 9 (26.2)
Rushing: No. 23 (97.1 yards per game)
Passing: No. 6 (2,379 net yards)
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Top performers:
Joe Mixon: No. 4 in rushing yards in NFL
Ja'Marr Chase: No. 3 in receiving yards in NFL
Joe Burrow: No. 5 in total yards, No. 3 in touchdowns in NFL
Defense:
Points per game: No. 12 (22.6)
Passing yards per game: No. 22 (260.3)
Rushing yards per game: No. 9 (100.9)
Sacks: No. 6 (23)
Takeaways: No. 20 (9)
Top performers:
Trey Hendrickson: No. 6 in sacks (8.5)
Chidobe Awuzie: No. 8 in pass deflections (8)
Logan Wilson: No. 4 in interceptions (4)
D.J. Reader: No. 4 highest-graded player on defense, No. 2 against the run per Pro Football Focus
Following the 41-16 loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 9, several Bengals players, including D.J. Reader, said confidently they believe they will come out of the bye week a much better team. If the Bengals want to make the playoffs for the first time since 2015, they'll have to get back to playing better on defense and eliminate turnovers on offense.
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The Bengals have one of the most explosive passing attacks in the league and believe they haven't played their best game yet as an offense.
Offensive coordinator Brian Callahan said Cincinnati needs to be better on third down as they have one of the highest 3-and-out percentages in the NFL.
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Defensively, the amount of missed tackles and lack of physicality up front in the recent two losses seems uncharacteristic after the first seven weeks. We'll see which Bengals defense returns following the bye.
"Everything we want is right in front of us," Reader said. "Everybody we play, they're in our division. Everybody who's sitting 5-4, they're right there with us. We've got to play all those people. So, it's exciting. It's an exciting feeling. You know it's on you."
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