PHILADELPHIA — A midweek trip to Philadelphia should keep the Bengals from focusing on another Pennsylvania team for a few more days.
The Bengals (7-6) find themselves in a unique position where they are tied with the Steelers for the last playoff spot in the AFC, but a loss to the Eagles (4-9) tonight wouldn’t ruin their chances.
“This decides if we go to the playoffs or not,” quarterback Andy Dalton said. “We still have to take it one at a time. We’ve got to get a win, and then we’ll focus on the last two.”
Well, the next one is far more crucial.
The Bengals visit the Steelers on Dec. 23 and finish at home against the AFC North-leading Baltimore Ravens. Win or lose against the Eagles, the Bengals have to beat the Steelers to get in the playoffs unless Pittsburgh loses both of its other games — at Dallas this week and vs. Cleveland in Week 17.
“We want to finish these last three games 3-0 and see what happens after that,” cornerback Leon Hall said. “You get to losing games obviously this late in the season, you kind of take destiny out of your own hands. You don’t want to be part of that.”
Three wins — or only two if they’re against Pittsburgh and Baltimore — guarantees the Bengals their second straight playoff appearance for the first time since 1981-82. They lost to Houston 31-10 in a wild-card game last January.
Coming off a last-second loss at home to Dallas, the Bengals had no time to dwell on a disappointing defeat in a short week.
“It’s a quick turnaround, and that’s probably a good thing for us,” coach Marvin Lewis said. “We need to improve fundamentally on the things we’re doing.”
The last time the Bengals played the Eagles, the game ended in a tie in 2008.
“To see the way they played last week shows they’re not giving up,” Dalton said. “They’re still playing hard. For them to be in that situation, that’s what you have to do. We’ve got to come out and we’ve got to play our best. Just because they lost (eight) in a row doesn’t mean anything. We’ve got to come out and play our best to get a win.’’