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          Cincinnati Bengals schedule 2024: Takeaways, predictions

          AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster
          • Ben Baby, ESPN Staff WriterMay 15, 2024, 08:52 PM ET
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              Ben Baby covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN. He joined the company in July 2019. Prior to ESPN, he worked for various newspapers in Texas, most recently at The Dallas Morning News where he covered college sports. He provides daily coverage of the Bengals for ESPN.com, while making appearances on SportsCenter, ESPN's NFL shows and ESPN Radio programs. A native of Grapevine, Texas, he graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor's degree in journalism. He is an adjunct journalism professor at Southern Methodist University and a member of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA).
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          CINCINNATI-- The Cincinnati Bengals' 2024 schedule was released Wednesday along with the rest of the NFL slate.

          Led by star quarterback Joe Burrow, the Bengals will be featured in several prominent games this season. Cincinnati has five prime-time matchups, featuring two on ESPN's Monday Night Football.

          Cincinnati will get an early showdown against rival Kansas City and quarterback Patrick Mahomes in Week 2, which is the earliest the Bengals have faced the reigning Super Bowl champs during the regular season since the two teams first met in the AFC Championship Game in 2021.

          The Bengals will not have an AFC North game until Week 5, when they face the Baltimore Ravens at home. Burrow suffered his season-ending wrist injury against the Ravens last year in a Week 11 loss.

          Here's what's in store for the Bengals:

          Bengals 2024 regular-season schedule

          Week 1: Sept. 8 New England

          Week 2: Sept. 15: at Kansas City

          Week 3: Sept. 23 Washington (MNF)

          Week 4: Sept. 29 at Carolina

          Week 5: Oct. 6 Baltimore

          Week 6: Oct. 13 at N.Y. Giants (SNF)

          Week 7: Oct. 20 at Cleveland

          Week 8: Oct. 27 Philadelphia

          Week 9: Nov. 3 Las Vegas

          Week 10: Nov. 7 at Baltimore (TNF)

          Week 11: Nov. 17: at L.A. Chargers

          Week 12: BYE

          Week 13: Dec. 1 Pittsburgh

          Week 14: Dec. 9 at Dallas (MNF)

          Week 15: Dec. 15 at Tennessee

          Week 16: Dec. 19 Cleveland (TNF)

          Week 17: Dec. 28/29: Denver*

          Week 18: Jan: 4/5: at Pittsburgh*

          Strength of schedule: The Bengals' schedule is tied for the 14th-easiest as opponents had a .502 win percentage last season.

          Over/under: 9.5

          Biggest takeaway

          Cincinnati still has plenty of star power. Despite not making the playoffs last season after Burrow went down with his wrist injury, the Bengals still earned five games in prime-time slots, including two in December. This season, Cincinnati is looking to regain its status as AFC contenders and will have high-profile matchups against the Cowboys and the Browns in nationally televised games during the final five weeks of the season.

          Revenge game

          Burrow will get a chance to dispel any bad vibes from his injury last year by facing Baltimore in nearly an identical situation. Just like the second game against the Ravens in 2023, the contest will be at Baltimore on Thursday Night Football. It might be a week earlier than it was a year ago, but the storyline of Burrow coming back nearly a full year removed from when and where his season ended will be a major talking point in a mid-season AFC North showdown.

          Bold prediction

          The Week 11 game against the Chargers could be one of the games of the year. With Cincinnati coming off a long layoff, the Bengals could end up in a high-leverage matchup featuring the Chargers and Justin Herbert, one of the game's most exciting quarterbacks and a fellow member of the 2020 draft class. Joe Burrow was on the losing end of the his lone matchup against Herbert when the two teams met in Cincinnati in 2021.