The Bengals gear up for a road primetime test when they take on the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium on Sunday Night Football. The game kicks off at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC/Peacock. Here is what to watch for:
Bengals Offense Continues Surge
Cincinnati's offense has been operating at a high level through the first five weeks, boasting the fourth-highest scoring average in the NFL at 28.0 points per game. The Bengals have amassed 140 total points, their most since 2018 and fourth-most in team history across the opening five games of a season.
The Bengals have produced 30+ points in three straight contests going back to Week 3, which ties for the longest active streak with the Washington Commanders. If Cincinnati can hit that number again on Sunday night, it would mark the first time the team has scored 30+ in four consecutive games since Weeks 13-16 of the 1997 season.
A boost to the Bengals' offensive outputs has been their ability to execute scoring drives coming out of halftime. Cincinnati has a league-leading 27 points on its opening offensive possession of the second half and holds a streak of four straight games with a touchdown drive following the break.
Burrow Following Up Career Day
Joe Burrow is coming off a career-high five touchdown passes last Sunday against Baltimore, and by completing 30 of 39 passes (76.6 percent) for 392 yards, he became the 10th quarterback ever to post a stat line of 390+ passing yards and 5+ touchdown throws on a completion percentage of 75+. He also moved into fifth on the Bengals' all-time passing yards list, surpassing Jeff Blake (15,134).
Through five games, Burrow leads the NFL in touchdown passes (12) and passer rating (113.6; minimum 50 attempts), while ranking second in completions (125), second in completion percentage (72.3) and sixth in passing yards (1370). His 12 scoring tosses are tied for the most in Bengals history through the first five games alongside Boomer Esiason (1988), Carson Palmer (2007) and Andy Dalton (2008).
See the top photos from the Bengals practice on October 9, 2024.
B.J. Hill Faces Former Team for First Time
Sunday night marks the first time defensive tackle B.J. Hill faces the Giants since being traded from New York to Cincinnati before the start of the 2021 season.
Hill was a third-round draft pick of the Giants in 2018 and played in 48 games for them over three seasons. He logged 7.5 sacks along the New York defensive line including a then-career-high 5.5 in his 2018 rookie campaign (matched in 2021 with Cincinnati). Since joining the Bengals, Hill has started 44 of 59 games played (including postseason), with an active streak of 42 straight starts coming into Week 6.
After being out of the lineup for Weeks 3 and 4 due to a hamstring injury, Hill returned to action against Baltimore and contributed five tackles, a quarterback hit and a pass defensed.
Close Encounters in Limited Bengals-Giants Series
Though the two franchises have met just 11 times previously, nine of those games have been decided by a touchdown or less, and five of the six most recent meetings have been separated by a field goal or less. The Giants have never beaten the Bengals by more than seven points, while Cincinnati owns the two outliers in terms of decisive victories — a 30-13 win at Riverfront Stadium in 1977 and a 31-13 win at Paul Brown Stadium in 2012.
Entering Sunday night, the Bengals have played fewer games against the Giants than any other long-established NFL team. The only team with fewer matchups against Cincinnati is Carolina with eight, but the Panthers have been in operation only since 1995.
The White Bengal Game
Don't Miss the rare White Bengal, Oct. 27, against the Philadelphia Eagles
Check out the Bengals 2024 Schedule.