How Bengals advanced to 2022 Super Bowl: Key moves, crucial wins, turning point, biggest reasons for success

The Cincinnati Bengals have never won a Super Bowl in their 54-year history, but they're one win away after stunning the Super Bowl favorite Kansas City Chiefs, and advancing to their first NFL championship since 1988. On Sunday evening, the Bengals will take on the NFC champion Los Angeles Rams for a chance to hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy for the first time as a franchise.

Before looking forward and breaking down what to expect when these two teams, it's worth looking back on how the Bengals got to this point. The story begins in 2019, when Cincinnati moved on from its most successful coach in recent memory (Marvin Lewis, who had restored the team to respectability after 14 consecutive playoff-less seasons) and began to operate just a little bit differently than it had for the early portion of the 21st century.

Cincinnati replaced Lewis with Zac Taylor, who had previously been the quarterbacks coach of the Rams, where he helped Sean McVay turn Jared Goff from a rookie-year laughingstock into one of the league's most effective quarterbacks in 2017 and 2018. Taylor brought in former Broncos and Raiders quarterbacks coach Brian Callahan as his offensive coordinator, and former Dolphins and Giants defensive backs coach Lou Anarumo as his defensive coordinator.

The first season of the Taylor era was wildly unsuccessful -- at least on the field. The Bengals went 2-14, good for the worst record in the NFL. Incumbent quarterback Andy Dalton regressed hard, putting together one of the worst seasons of his career. The offense lagged, finishing 26th in total yards and 29th in yards per play, 30th in both total points and points per drive, and 29th in Football Outsiders' DVOA. The defense wasn't much better, checking in 29th in total yards and 31st in yards per play, 25th in total points and 22nd in points per drive, as well as 30th in DVOA.

The good news, though, was that the Bengals secured the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, which they used on LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, kicking off a new-and-improved era of Bengals football. Burrow was coming off a magical collegiate season during which he threw for 5,671 yards and 60 touchdowns against only six interceptions. Cincinnati paired Burrow with Clemson wideout Tee Higgins, whom the Bengals drafted at the top of the second round. They added linebacker Logan Wilson in the third round as well.

Interestingly, the Bengals also broke with recent tradition and ventured into free agency, handing out big-money, multiyear deals to multiple players from other teams. They netted defensive lineman D.J. Reader on a four-year, $53 million deal, cornerback Trae Waynes for $42 million over three years, and safety Vonn Bell for three years and $18 million.

The Bengals showed only moderate improvement during the 2020 season, but it at least seemed fairly clear that they had the answer at quarterback. In the season's first nine games,. Burrow completed 242 of 370 passes (65.4%) for 2,485 yards (6.7 per attempt), 12 touchdowns, and just five interceptions. He added 130 yards and three more scores on the ground. Early in the third quarter of the team's Week 10 game, though, Burrow (22 of 34 for 203 yards and a score to that point) dropped back to pass from inside his team's own 10-yard line. The offensive line did not hold up, with each of the tackles allowing perimeter pressure and the interior line collapsing back into Burrow's face. He got the throw off and gave Tyler Boyd a chance at a jump ball down the field, but he also got high-lowed by Washington's defense line on the release, and it resulted in Burrow tearing his ACL and MCL, and damaging his PCL and meniscus.

Burrow had already been sacked 32 times to that point in the season, highlighting the weakness of the team's offensive line. Now, that offensive line had collapsed in the worst way, resulting in a season-ending injury to the team's franchise passer. With Brandon Allen and Ryan Finley filling in down the stretch, the Bengals limped their way to a 4-12-1 overall record, bad enough to secure the No. 5 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.

All offseason, a debate raged about how the Bengals should handle the selection. Should they draft Oregon tackle Penei Sewell and plug him in as Burrow's blind-side tackle for the next decade? Or should they take Burrow's former LSU teammate, wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase, and fix the offensive line a different way? We know which route the Bengals chose. They drafted Chase, and despite his preseason issues with the dropsies, he went on to have an All-Pro season, catching 81 passes for 1,455 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Cincinnati also added two interior offensive linemen (Jackson Carman and Trey Hill, rotational defensive lineman Cameron Sample, and kicker Evan McPherson later in the draft. And again, the Bengals went out and added key pieces in free agency: they signed Trey Hendrickson away from the Saints with a four-year, $60 million, Mike Hilton from the division-rival Steelers on a four-year, $24 million pact, Chidobe Awuzie from the Cowboys on a three-year $21.75 million deal, added Riley Reiff, Eli Apple, and Larry Ogunjobi on value contracts, and traded for B.J. Hill.

Hendrickson followed up his breakout 2020 campaign with an even better season in 2021, notching 14 sacks and finishing among the league leaders in pressures. Hilton maintained his strong play in the slot. Awuzie had the best season of his career playing in Anarumo's defense. Reiff played well on the right side of the offensive line, Apple emerged as a consistent starter, and Ogunjobi and Hill played well next to Reader on the defensive interior. Holdovers from the previous regime like Jessie Bates III and Sam Hubbard blossomed into excellent players, while players from the Taylor era's first drive -- most notably Jonah Williams and Germaine Pratt -- became key pieces on each side of the ball.

So, even though the Bengals' offense started a bit slowly as Burrow worked his way back into shape and the team eased into the year with a run-oriented approach, by the time they came back from their bye week, they were ready to fire on all cylinders. And they did just that, winning five of their first seven games after the break, including three straight against the Broncos, Ravens, and Chiefs. They wrapped up the AFC North before Week 18 even began, and were able to rest key players to get ready for the playoffs.

Joe Burrow

CIN • QB • #9

View Profile

The Bengals hosted the Raiders in the wild card round, the team's first playoff game since 2015. It was the Chase show pretty much all afternoon. The star rookie finished with nine catches for 116 yards, and Cincinnati captured its first playoff victory since 1990. They had to go on the road to play the No. 1 seed Tennessee Titans last week, and thanks to McPherson's 52-yard field goal as time expired, the Bengals are set to play in the AFC title game for the first time since 1988.

They overcame a monster defensive performance to do it, as Burrow was sacked a playoff-record-tying nine times by Titans defenders. Cincinnati's defense came through with its own dominant performance, intercepting three Ryan Tannehill passes and holding Derrick Henry to just 62 yards on his 20 carries.

In the AFC Championship, Cincinnati secured its most improbable victory of all. After spotting the Chiefs a 21-3 advantage, the Bengals battled all the way back and eventually won in overtime on a walk-off field goal from McPherson, his second in as many games.

Next comes the ultimate test against the Rams in Los Angeles. Pull off yet another upset, and this Cincinnati team will complete one of the most improbable Super Bowl runs in NFL history (based on preseason expectations).