Williams: How Cincinnati Bengals and Reds whiff on seizing the moment

It was a harsh-reality weekend for the Cincinnati Bengals and Reds. For their fans. And for the people who run those franchises.

Seize the moment and go all in on winning when the opportunity is there. And savor every bit of that moment.

Because it may not come around again for a long time.

The Reds barely missing the postseason stings for impatient diehards who are left to wonder what if the Reds hadn’t sat on their hands at trade deadline. I agreed the Reds’ decision at the time, thinking it was smart to hold on to all their prospects. Like others, though, I’m second-guessing that now – and the Reds’ front office should be, too.

No guarantees this promising, young Reds team is going to blossom into a playoff team – let alone a World Series contender.

The Bengals, meanwhile, are teetering on being a complete bust after entering the season with Super Bowl title hopes.

Analysis: Who is to blame for Cincinnati Bengals' 1-3 start?

You can probably bid adieu to that dream. The Bengals will be fortunate to squeak into the playoffs, having dropped three of their first four games and showing no signs of getting better. That was obvious in a 27-3 clock-cleaning at the hands of the middling Tennessee Titans on Sunday in Nashville.

Since 1990, only 14% of teams that started a season 1-3 made the playoffs, according to Fox Sports.

Hard to see the Bengals defying those odds. Their supposedly all-world offense didn’t score a touchdown for the second game this season. Cincinnati has scored three offensive touchdowns all season. Offense was supposed to be the strength of the team, the catalyst to seriously contending for a Lombardi Trophy.

What the hell happened?

You can only blame Joe Burrow’s calf injury so much. The offense has undoubtedly been affected by Burrow missing training camp. He’s not been himself. The Bengals don’t have a downfield passing game. But Burrow has played every game. As such, you should expect better than 1990s-like Bengals offensive futility.

The problems run deeper than Burrow’s injury.

The Bengals got too comfortable, from the front office to the locker room. They didn’t do everything it takes to win a Super Bowl, despite what some have said.

They let both veteran starting safeties go in free agency. They didn’t upgrade the position group. They let their starting tight end go in free agency. They didn’t upgrade. They stuck with an aging running back. They missed a chance to upgrade.

The Bengals could’ve used a strong running game to help them weather Burrow’s injury. Instead, they decided to retain aging running back Joe Mixon. He’s been decent with limited touches. But there’s a reason his carries have been limited. He’s past his prime. The Bengals just can’t give him the ball 20 or more times a game and expect him to lead them to victory.

No worries, though. It’s a passing league, right? Well, the Bengals’ inability to stop the run has also been a big problem. They’ve given up an eye-popping 557 total yards rushing in their losses: 206 yards on the ground to Cleveland, 178 to Baltimore and 173 to Tennessee.

If the Bengals had gone all in on winning a Super Bowl, then they would’ve maxed-out their salary cap space. That’s not what the Bengals do. So be it. It’s their money, but it’d be wise for fans to stop buying the narrative that every move the Bengals made ahead of the season was done with the Super Bowl title in mind.

No, everything the Bengals’ front office did was with Burrow’s contract in mind.

The Bengals have gotten soft on the field. Maybe that goes hand-in-hand with getting too comfortable. Defensive players ping-ponged off Titans running back Derrick Henry and other Tennessee ball carriers all game. At times, Bengals defensive players left you wondering if they even practice basic tackling drills.

Playing soft and being ill-prepared can be traced back to coach Zac Taylor’s take-it-easy approach in training camp and preseason games. This point has been beaten to a pulp – and it’ll continue to be brought up if the Bengals keep missing tackles and lack offensive rhythm.

The Bengals clearly took the approach that Burrow would be fine come September and made few adjustments to account for the possibility that maybe, just maybe, he wouldn’t be Superman. Bengals coaches had the attitude: We’ve started slow before, and everything’ll be fine.

It’s October now. Everything may not end up fine. Better savor those Super Bowl LVI memories, Bengals fans. But hey, at least they're fresher than the 1990 World Series.

Contact columnist Jason Williams by email at  jwilliams@enquirer.com and on Twitter @jwilliamscincy.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Super Bowl title dreams teetering on lost for 1-3 Cincinnati Bengals