This is it.
This is the season the Cincinnati Bengals go get this long-suffering city’s first Lombardi Trophy.
There is no next year.
Joe Burrow, the most consequential player in Bengals history, says so.
When the star quarterback laid it all out in his Aug. 20 press conference, Burrow crystalized so much about the state of the Bengals franchise. For once, all the pieces appear in place to contend for a championship. No more excuses.
Excitement is at an all-time high for the Bengals. Yes, everyone around here seems to be feeling great about them for once.
It all started with ownership’s willingness to change at the outset of the offseason. One of the NFL’s all-time underachieving franchises finally decided to do things differently. It had to happen
as the clock ticks on Burrow’s injury-riddled career. He’ll turn 30 in December.
And it happened because Burrow said so. No player has influenced Mike Brown during his 36 years as club owner more than Burrow, the greatest quarterback in franchise history. Burrow has demanded excellence like no other player since the Bengals were founded nearly six decades ago.
Burrow was open about his frustrations with the organization last season, leading to lots of speculation about whether he would pull a Carson Palmer and demand a trade if major efforts weren’t made to improve. Ownership responded with aggressive offseason moves. Now, all that's left to do?
Win big.
“I’m trying to manifest” a championship, Burrow said in that Aug. 20 press conference. “You can keep pushing it down the road, or you can talk about it now and say: ‘This is the year.’ I’m tired of saying next year, next year, next year. This is it. Your life is too short to keep pushing things down the road. I’m trying to instill some urgency and some intensity in everybody to go and be great every day.”
That message resonated after the 2025 season, when the Bengals missed the playoffs for the third consecutive year. Ownership was living off the surprise run to the Super Bowl in the 2021 season, relying too heavily on Burrow and a run-it-back mentality.
The Bengals went all in like never before this offseason. They made the big, bold decision to trade away a top-10 draft pick for the first time in club history to bring home a game-wrecking and team-leading superstar to overhaul a defense that’s spoiled some of Burrow’s best days.
The Bengals didn’t just stop with the trade for All-Pro defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence. They went out and signed a couple of Super Bowl champions in edge rusher Boye Mafe and safety Bryan Cook. The Bengals also signed veteran defensive tackle Jonathan Allen, a two-time Pro Bowl selection during his 9-year career.
Cincinnati now has at least a decent defense. And that might be all it’ll take to make a deep playoff run with Burrow and one of the NFL’s most prolific offenses.
Every starter on offense is back. Burrow is fully healthy entering the season. The Bengals didn’t have any major injuries during training camp. They didn’t have any player-contract distractions or other off-the-field drama, either.
So, yeah, this might be it.
The Bengals’ chances of fulfilling late founder Paul Brown’s dream of a Super Bowl championship may never be better.
Contact columnist Jason Williams at jwilliams@enquirer.com
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Is this really it for Bengals, Burrow to win Super Bowl? | Williams
