The Cincinnati Bengals are taking a different kind of road trip this week. At 5-2, the Bengals leave Tuesday after practicing in Cincinnati and fly to Spain for Sunday’s game against the Atlanta Falcons in Madrid, according to The Associated Press. They will take Wednesday off, then practice Thursday and Friday at the Spanish National Team Training Facility.
Head coach Zac Taylor learned plenty about preparing for an international game in 2019, when the Bengals faced the Los Angeles Rams in London, the AP reported. “You treat it like a six-day week,” Taylor told The Associated Press. Sunday’s game, which kicks off at 9:30 a.m. Eastern, is the third international game in franchise history, after a 27-27 tie with Washington in London in 2016 and the 24-10 loss to the Rams in 2019.
Cincinnati arrives in Madrid off a 43-36 overtime victory over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday, its second straight comeback from a 13-point first-half deficit — the first team since New Orleans in 2020 to do that in back-to-back weeks, according to the AP. At 5-2, the Bengals are off to their best start since 2021.
Quarterback Joe Burrow is the fourth quarterback in league history with at least four touchdown passes and a passer rating of at least 115 in three consecutive games, according to The Associated Press. Defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence told the AP that while the team will have some time for sightseeing, the focus remains on improving to 6-2 and pulling into a tie with Pittsburgh atop the AFC North before a pivotal rematch in Cincinnati on November 15.
The trip does come with one fresh injury concern. Rookie defensive end Cashius Howell had wrist surgery Sunday night and will likely be placed on injured reserve, according to the AP, leaving Cincinnati thinner at edge rusher as the November 10 trade deadline approaches.
After Madrid, the Bengals return home for that November 15 prime-time rematch with Pittsburgh — a game that could decide first place in the AFC North. First, though, comes a six-day week on another continent, and a chance to come home 6-2.
Photo: Antony-22, CC BY-SA