The Denver Broncos host the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football. Here is a deeper look at their Week 4 opponent.
Week Four of the 2025 NFL season is upon us. The Denver Broncos host the Cincinnati Bengals for their first primetime game of the season on Monday Night Football. The Broncos are hoping to get back to being a .500 ball club, while the Bengals are hoping to stick atop of the AFC North even without Joe Burrow at quarterback. The stakes are high for both teams, but there is no denying it’s a must-win game for Denver. With that said, let’s take a deeper look at the Bengals, some key players, and what the Broncos have to accomplish to secure a primetime victory.
2024 Cincinnati Bengals Season Review
The Bengals finished their 2024 campaign falling just sort of the playoffs with a 9-8 record and a third-place finish in the AFC North. While their offense was efficient scoring the sixth most points and accumulating the ninth most yards in the NFL, their defense ranked 25th in points allowed and yards given up. In order for them to get back to being a playoff team, they are certainly going to have to do much better than they did defensively in ‘24.
2025 Cincinnati Bengals Offseason Additions
Falling just short of the playoffs, the Bengals didn’t make a whole lot of outside splashes in free agency this offseason. However, they did a good job of rewarding their top players who have helped them be successful in recent memory. They gave mega-deals to receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Most of their outside additions were on the defensive side of the ball.
The same goes for their endeavors in the 2025 NFL Draft, where they used multiple early selections to improve the defense. They are hopeful first-round pick Shemar Stewart can eventually give them a must needed boost to their pass rush, but rookie linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr. has already hit the ground running. Through three games, he already has 21 tackles and is making a lot of plays on the ball just like he did in college.
Offensive X-Factor: Quarterback Jake Browning
Last season, I had wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase as the obvious choice here as their offensive X-Factor. He’s certainly their most dynamic playmaker. They are certainly going to need him to perform well in order to topple the Broncos on the road.
However, for this year’s game, I’m going to switch it up and focus on a player that certainly has a lot of work to do. I’m talking about quarterback Jake Browning since Joe Burrow is out due to a foot injury for quite some time Browning’s start on the road in Denver will be the fifteen game of his career and his ninth start. Playing in two games this season, he has completed 68-percent of his passes for 381 yards and three touchdowns. However, he has been prone to throwing interceptions (five) in those two appearances and has a quarterback rating of 67.1.
I don’t envision Browning being able to perform like Burrow did in last year’s matchup. In fact, I think this matchup is pretty favorable for Denver’s defense who has the most sacks in the NFL with 12. Keep in mind, the Bengals’ offense has also struggled to run the ball this year. Chase Brown has only 93 yards on 47 carries. That’s a pitiful 2.0 yards per carry and puts enormous pressure on Browning to have to try and put the game on his shoulders.
The Bengals have some good playmakers on offense. Even so, I’m just not convinced the former Washington product is going to be able to take command of the game in the Mile High City. It would be a huge surprise if that happened, but stranger things have happened.
Defensive X-Factor: Safety Jordan Battle
For their ’24 matchup I had defensive end Trey Hendrickson as the X-Factor for the Bengals defense. This season, I’ll switch gears here and focus on a member of their secondary who has impressed to start the year. That would be safety Jordan Battle.
The third-year pro finally has come into his own as a full-time starter for the team. So far in his ‘25 campaign, he already has 23 tackles, 2 interceptions, and 2 passes defended. If he keeps it up, Battle will certainly put together a career year at the age of 25-years-old and could cement himself as one of the best up-and-coming defensive backs in the NFL.
Overall, the Bengals pass defense has struggled a bit today, but they are tied for third league-wide with four interceptions. Battle has two of them, and the Broncos can’t afford to let his ball-hawking skills and playmaking range to stifle their passing offense. Bo Nix is going to have to be very cognizant of where he is at all times.
How the Broncos can secure a victory over the Bengals
Over the course of the week, the Mile High Report staff and I have authored several pieces on how the Broncos can emerge victorious on Monday night. This is one of those games that could dictate the aura of the rest of the season. Sitting at 1-2, Denver can’t afford to crater into a 1-3 hole with the potential of the Los Angeles Chargers getting to 4-0. That would be a catastrophic scenario and put their divisional and playoff hopes in jeopardy. If the Broncos can be more efficient on offense and generate some turnovers on defense, I have a feeling they will be able to take care of business. All things considered, I expect the coaching staff to have their players poised to perform at a high level in primetime.
Hart’s Prediction: Broncos 34, Bengals 13.
Category: General Sports
