It’s fun to think about the Cincinnati Bengals sneaking into the playoffs and seeing what Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins might be able to do.

After all, if the Bengals do complete the comeback, storming from 3-8 to the postseason, it probably means they’ve rattled off six straight wins before the wild card round. That’s a wicked bit of momentum that perhaps no other team in the bracket would boast.

It isn’t hard to figure out who might be rooting against the Bengals making such a feat happen, though.

Asked which AFC North team would be the most dangerous in the playoffs, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic hinted that other teams are probably hoping the Bengals don’t make it there:

“I think if you posed this question to coaches from the Patriots, Broncos and Bills, the AFC North team they’d probably least want to see in the playoffs is the Bengals and I say that knowing that two of those teams have already beaten Cincinnati. They did it without having to face Burrow, though. A healthy Burrow, that collection of weapons and an improving offensive line makes the Bengals the most dangerous team. Burrow is good in cold weather and he has a pretty solid track record in the postseason, so that adds to it.”

Fair points, all things considered. The Bengals can only worry about taking care of business, though, starting this weekend in Buffalo against the Bills. Do that, and it sets up a rematch with the same Baltimore Ravens team they beat last week.

From there, the Bengals would close the season against Miami, Arizona and Cleveland.

There’s a scenario where the Bengals can still lose one more game and still perhaps back into the playoffs, but it would require more outside help than they already need.

For Bengals fans, these conversations are both exciting and exhausting. They’ve been here before, wishing the Bengals had simply taken care of business earlier in the season so that the team could just be dangerous…with a spot already secured.