| Team: | Cincinnati Bengals |
| Year: | 2023 |
| Record: | 9–8 |
| Division Place: | 4th AFC North |
| Coach: | Zac Taylor |
| Owner: | Mike Brown |
| Stadium: | Paycor Stadium |
| Playoffs: | Did not qualify |
| Pro Bowlers: | WR Ja'Marr Chase DE Trey Hendrickson |
| Uniform: | File:Cincinnati Bengals Uniforms 2023.png |
| Shortnavlink: | Bengals seasons |
The 2023 season was the Cincinnati Bengals' 54th season in the National Football League (NFL), their 56th overall and their fifth under head coach Zac Taylor. The Bengals failed to improve upon their 12–4 record from 2022. They lost 34–20 in a key week 11 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.[1] With a Week 17 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, coupled with wins by the Steelers and Bills earlier in the day, the Bengals were eliminated from playoff contention for the first time since 2020.
Already struggling to a 5–4 start, the Bengals were dealt a critical blow in week 11 when they lost franchise quarterback Joe Burrow for the season to a wrist injury. Despite this, backup Jake Browning managed to perform above expectations, as the team went 8–6 and were still in the playoff picture. However, back to back losses to the Steelers and Chiefs kept the Bengals out of the playoff picture. This was the first season since 2008 that Kevin Huber was not on the roster, as he announced his retirement on July 7.[2]
A 31–14 home win over the Browns to end the season gave the Bengals their 9th win of the season, meaning that every team in the AFC North finished above .500, the first time a division in the NFL had done this since 1935.
The Cincinnati Bengals drew an average home attendance of 66,040 in 9 home games in the 2023 NFL season.
| Position | Player | 2023 Team | Date signed | Contract | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | Jessie Bates III | Atlanta Falcons | March 13[3] | 4 years, $64 million | |
| S | Vonn Bell | Carolina Panthers | March 13[4] | 3 years, $22.5 million | |
| CB | Eli Apple | Miami Dolphins | July 29[5] | 1 year, $1.6 million | |
| TE | Hayden Hurst | Carolina Panthers | March 15[6] | 3 years, $21.75 million | |
| CB | Tre Flowers | Atlanta Falcons | May 8[7] | 1 year, $1.232 million | |
| RB | Samaje Perine | Denver Broncos | March 14[8] | 2 years, $7.5 million | |
| QB | Brandon Allen | San Francisco 49ers | May 3[9] | 1 year, $1.232 million | |
| TE | Drew Sample | Cincinnati Bengals | April 14 | 1 year, $1.232 million | |
| LS | Clark Harris | ||||
| G | Max Scharping | Cincinnati Bengals | March 20[10] | 1 year, $1.28 million | |
| S | Michael Thomas | Cincinnati Bengals | March 13[11] | 1 year, $1.165 million | |
| WR | Trent Taylor | Cincinnati Bengals | March 27[12] | 1 year, $1.232 million | |
| CB | Jalen Davis | Cincinnati Bengals | March 9[13] | 2 years, $2.43 million | |
| LB | Germaine Pratt | Cincinnati Bengals | March 14[14] | 3 years, $20.25 million | |
| CB | Chris Lammons | Indianapolis Colts | July 27[15] | 1 year, $1.01 million | |
| RB | Trayveon Williams | Cincinnati Bengals | March 16[16] | 1 year, $1.232 million |
| Position | Player | 2023 Team | Date signed | Contract | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LS | Cal Adomitis | Cincinnati Bengals | February 22[18] | 1 year, $870K | |
| LB | Clay Johnston | ||||
| TE | Mitchell Wilcox | Cincinnati Bengals | July 24[19] | 1 year, $1.04 million |
| Position | Player | 2022 Team | Date signed | Contract | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | Cody Ford | Arizona Cardinals | March 16[20] | 1 year, $1.08 million | |
| OT | Orlando Brown Jr. | Kansas City Chiefs | March 17[21] | 4 years, $64.09 million | |
| S | Nick Scott | Los Angeles Rams | March 20[22] | 3 years, $12 million | |
| CB | Sidney Jones | Las Vegas Raiders | March 27[23] | 1 year, $1.13 million | |
| TE | Irv Smith Jr. | Minnesota Vikings | March 28[24] | 1 year, $1.75 million | |
| DE | Tarell Basham | Tennessee Titans | March 31[25] | 1 year, $1.131 million | |
| QB | Trevor Siemian | Chicago Bears | May 3[26] | 1 year, $1.317 million | |
| QB | Reid Sinnett | San Antonio Brahmas (XFL) | July 30[27] | 1 year, $870K |
See main article: 2023 NFL draft.
| Round | Selection | Player | Position | College | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 | ||||||
| 2 | 60 | |||||
| 3 | 92 | Traded to Kansas City | ||||
| 95 | S | From Kansas City | ||||
| 4 | 131 | |||||
| 5 | 163 | |||||
| 6 | 206 | Andrei Iosivas | WR | Princeton | ||
| 217 | Brad Robbins | P | Michigan | From Kansas City | ||
| 7 | 246 | |||||
Draft trades
| Name | Position | College | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Larry Brooks | S | Tulane | [28] |
| Malachi Carter | WR | Georgia Tech | |
| Shaka Heyward | LB | Duke | |
| Mac Hippenhammer | WR | Miami (OH) | |
| Shedrick Jackson | WR | Auburn | |
| Jaxson Kirkland | G | Washington | |
| Devonnsha Maxwell | DT | Chattanooga | |
| Jaylen Moody | LB | Alabama | |
| Tyler Murray | LB | Memphis | |
| Tautala Pesefea | DT | Arizona State | |
| Jacob Saylors | RB | E. Tennessee | |
| Christian Trahan | TE | Houston | |
| Calvin Tyler Jr. | RB | Kentucky |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Green Bay Packers | L 19–36 | 0–1 | Paycor Stadium | Recap | ||
| 2 | at Atlanta Falcons | T 13–13 | 0–1–1 | Mercedes-Benz Stadium | Recap | ||
| 3 | at Washington Commanders | L 19–21 | 0–2–1 | Fedex Field | Recap |
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 10 | at Cleveland Browns | L 3–24 | 0–1 | Cleveland Browns Stadium | Recap | |
| 2 | September 17 | Baltimore Ravens | L 24–27 | 0–2 | Paycor Stadium | Recap | |
| 3 | Los Angeles Rams | W 19–16 | 1–2 | Paycor Stadium | Recap | ||
| 4 | October 1 | at Tennessee Titans | L 3–27 | 1–3 | Nissan Stadium | Recap | |
| 5 | October 8 | at Arizona Cardinals | W 34–20 | 2–3 | State Farm Stadium | Recap | |
| 6 | October 15 | Seattle Seahawks | W 17–13 | 3–3 | Paycor Stadium | Recap | |
| 7 | Bye | ||||||
| 8 | October 29 | at San Francisco 49ers | W 31–17 | 4–3 | Levi's Stadium | Recap | |
| 9 | November 5 | Buffalo Bills | W 24–18 | 5–3 | Paycor Stadium | Recap | |
| 10 | November 12 | Houston Texans | L 27–30 | 5–4 | Paycor Stadium | Recap | |
| 11 | at Baltimore Ravens | L 20–34 | 5–5 | M&T Bank Stadium | Recap | ||
| 12 | November 26 | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 10–16 | 5–6 | Paycor Stadium | Recap | |
| 13 | at Jacksonville Jaguars | W 34–31 | 6–6 | EverBank Stadium | Recap | ||
| 14 | December 10 | Indianapolis Colts | W 34–14 | 7–6 | Paycor Stadium | Recap | |
| 15 | Minnesota Vikings | W 27–24 | 8–6 | Paycor Stadium | Recap | ||
| 16 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 11–34 | 8–7 | Acrisure Stadium | Recap | ||
| 17 | December 31 | at Kansas City Chiefs | L 17–25 | 8–8 | Arrowhead Stadium | Recap | |
| 18 | January 7 | Cleveland Browns | W 31–14 | 9–8 | Paycor Stadium | Recap | |
The Bengals opened the season on the road with an AFC North matchup against the in-state rival Cleveland Browns, marking the 100th meeting between the two franchises.
The Browns defense dominated the game, forcing ten Cincinnati punts including seven three-and-outs, and limiting the Bengals offense to six first downs. Quarterback Joe Burrow was limited to a career-low 82 passing yards. Joe Mixon led the Bengals' rushing attack with 13 carries for 56 yards. Defensively, the Bengals allowed Quarterback Deshaun Watson 154 passing yards, 45 rushing yards, a passing touchdown, and a rushing touchdown, a 55.2% completion percentage and one interception, and Nick Chubb's 106 rushing yards on 18 carries. Kicker Dustin Hopkins converted all three of his field goal attempts. The Bengals' lone score came on an Evan McPherson field goal, as he failed to connect on his second field goal attempt.
With the loss, the Bengals opened the season 0–1 for the second consecutive year.
The Bengals were upset at home against their division rival. With their second straight loss, the Bengals dropped to 0-2 for the second straight season. They were the only AFC North team without any victories following their game.
In a rematch of Super Bowl LVI, the Bengals got revenge on the Rams, winning the game to get their first victory of the regular season.
This would mark the first time Joe Burrow lost to the Titans, ending a 3-game winning streak (including playoffs) against the team. With the loss, the Bengals fell to 1-3.
In a rematch of the 2022 AFC Divisional Round, the Bengals continued their winning streak by defeating a Buffalo team that struggled their way to a 5–3 record before this important Week 9 contest. Cincinnati struck first on their opening drive on a touchdown pass from Burrow to tight end Irv Smith Jr.. Buffalo would respond with a two-yard touchdown run by quarterback Josh Allen on their opening drive, but the Bengals would then score 14 unanswered points (which came on a Mixon touchdown run and a Burrow touchdown pass to tight end Drew Sample) before halftime. In the second half, Cincinnati's offense could not get much going against Buffalo's injury-riddled defense, but Cincinnati's defense prevented Buffalo's offense from fully erasing the deficit. Buffalo would eventually cut Cincy's lead to six points on an 17-yard Allen touchdown pass to star wide receiver Stefon Diggs (and a successful two-point conversion from Allen to Diggs), but the Bengals ran out the clock on their next possession.[29]
In addition to losing the game, the Bengals suffered a devastating blow when QB Joe Burrow suffered a wrist injury in the 2nd quarter; it was later revealed to be season-ending.
After a tough win at home, the Bengals traveled to Pittsburgh for Round 2 against the Steelers. Heading into halftime, they fell behind 24-0 before finally scoring in the third quarter when Jake Browning found Tee Higgins on an 80-yard touchdown pass (with a successful two-point conversion), making the score 24-8. They fell behind 31-8 after Mason Rudolph found George Pickens on a 66-yard touchdown pass for the Steelers to increase their lead. The Bengals managed to somewhat shorten their deficit 31-11 when Evan McPherson kicked a 35-yard field goal. They would be kept from scoring the whole fourth quarter as the Steelers scored one last time off of Chris Boswell's 30-yard field goal to make the final score 34-11.
With their 3-game winning streak snapped, the Bengals fell to 8-7. They would also be swept by the Steelers for the first time since 2019.
After a tough road loss, the Bengals traveled to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs. The Bengals scored first in the first quarter when Evan McPherson kicked a 34-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead. The Chiefs then took the lead when Patrick Mahomes found Isiah Pacheco on an 8-yard touchdown pass to make it 7-3. In the second quarter, the Bengals were able to move up by 10, making the score 17-7 by way of Jake Browning's 8-yard touchdown pass to Joe Mixon, followed by his own QB sneak touchdown. Though, the Chiefs were able to make it 17-13 by way of 2 field goals kicked by Harrison Butker from 54 and 43 yards out. In the second half, it was all Chiefs scoring as Butker kicked 4 more field goals to make the final score 25-17. On the Bengals final drive, they converted a 4th and 18 at their own 32-yard line, but following two sacks to Jake Browning pushing them back to their own 38-yard line, and facing 4th and 27, Browning’s throw to Tee Higgins fell incomplete, sealing the loss.
With their second straight loss, the Bengals fell to 8-8. Coupled with wins by the Steelers and Bills, they were also eliminated from postseason contention. The Steelers' win over the Seahawks also assures they will finish last place in the AFC North.
With the win, the Bengals improved and finished the regular season at 9-8, meaning that every team in the AFC North finished above .500, marking the first time each team within an entire division finished the regular season with winning records since 1935.