After months of battling tough teams and each other, the Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers both have a chance to pad their potential playoff résumés over the next several weeks.
These AFC North rivals just completed a physical battle Sunday that saw the Bengals beat Pittsburgh 18-12 at Heinz Field. Both teams left battered and bruised, but things are looking up.
The easy stretch of the schedule comes right now for Cincinnati (7-2) and Pittsburgh (6-3). The combined record of the Bengals’ next four opponents is 12-23, while the Steelers’ next four opponents are 9-25.
Here is a look at their respective schedules:
Bengals
at Oakland Raiders (2-7)
Cleveland Browns (1-7)
Detroit Lions (1-8)
at Minnesota Vikings (8-1)
Steelers
at Kansas City Chiefs (2-7)
at Baltimore Ravens (4-4)
Oakland Raiders (2-7)
at Cleveland Browns (1-7)