The Bengals had won only six games combined in each of the last two seasons.
Quarterback Joe Burrow and the Bengals are headed to their first Super Bowl since the 1988 season after defeating the Chiefs, 27–20, in overtime on Sunday in the AFC championship.
Burrow finished the victory with 250 passing yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
Sunday's win capped off a historic playoff run for Cincinnati, who had not won a postseason game since the 1990 season, even though they had made the playoffs seven times between the 2005 and '15 NFL seasons.
After the win, Burrow admitted that predicting a Bengals Super Bowl run would have seemed absurd, even to him, after last year's result.
“I think if you had told me before the season, I would’ve been very surprised,” Burrow told Monday Morning Quarterback's Albert Breer. “But I’m not surprised right now because we’ve gone through a whole year. I know the kind of team that we have, and I know the guys that we have in the locker room. So right now, I’m not surprised. But if you were going to tell me after last season or in OTAs, I think I would’ve called you crazy.”
Last offseason, Burrow spent time in California, rehabbing from December ACL surgery. In OTAs, through May and June, he was still limited, with the Bengals trying to figure out how to improve on their six combined wins in Zac Taylor’s first two years with the organization.
“If you’re a competitor and you believe in what you’re doing, you dreamed about this day every day of your life,” Taylor told The MMQB. “And every single day that I’ve driven home from work, I’ve envisioned the people on the streets out there celebrating, getting ready for a parade. I think anybody that’s ever done anything special, or been a part of anything special, has had those same dreams. And we hope to make them reality.”
The Bengals will look to win their first Super Bowl title on Feb. 13, when they face the Rams. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. ET with the game being broadcast by NBC.
More NFL Coverage:
- MMQB: How the Bengals and Rams Punched Their Tickets to Super Bowl LVI
- The Speech, 2.0: How Sean McVay Reached Back to the Past to Inspire the Rams
- A Few First Impressions of Super Bowl LVI
All Bengals: Winners and Losers From the Bengals' AFC Championship Win Over the Chiefs
For more coverage of the Bengals, visit All Bengals