The names and faces have changed through the years, but one thing remains constant – the Eagles can’t beat the Bengals. Especially in Cincinnati, where they have never won. Ever.
And you know who the Eagles are playing in Sunday's Week 8 game at 1 p.m., right? Yes, the Bengals.
The Eagles are 3-9-2 against them in the all-time series. The last time they beat them was on Christmas Eve in 2000. Since then, they are 0-3-2.
The Bengals are scuffling at 3-4 this season but far from out of the playoff race at this early juncture. They have weapons all over the field in quarterback Joe Burrow, receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and running back Chase Brown, who is the twin brother of Eagles safety Sydney Brown.
“You start with Joe Burrow, Chase, and Higgins, those are big-time players at their positions,” said Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, whose defense has not allowed a touchdown in nine straight quarters. “Top of the line. And they have been running the ball better this year.
“So, they are really good. They scored a bunch of points against Baltimore. Lost by one point. It was (26-25) against Kansas City (in Week 2). They are really good.”
Obviously, the two teams are much different than the last time the Eagles went to Cincinnati on Dec. 4, 2016. Carson Wentz threw the football 60 times and had three interceptions in a 32-14 loss and Bengals QB that day, Andy Dalton, threw for 332 yards and two scores.
And the Eagles most certainly are not the same when they went there on Nov. 16, 2008. That was the day Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb learned that an NFL game could actually end in a tie, which this one did, 13-13. McNabb threw 58 times that day with three picks while Cincy QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, the same Ryan Fitzpatrick who was still playing as recently as 2021, threw for 261 yards and a touchdown.
So, perhaps the moral of the story is that Jalen Hurts can’t throw the ball 58 times like McNabb did or 60 times like Wentz did in his first trip to the city across the Ohio River from Kentucky. And the Eagles quarterback certainly cannot throw three interceptions like his two predecessors did.
The good news is, Hurts hasn’t thrown an interception in both games the Eagles have played coming out of the bye and they are 2-0 in those games. If he can stay on that streak and the defense can show its continued growth, perhaps the Eagles will end a franchise drought and find a way to win in Cincy.
