Bengals looking to end inexplicable losing streak: Joe Burrow has never won a game in Week 2

Since being selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, Joe Burrow has led the Cincinnati Bengals to two AFC title games and a Super Bowl, but one thing he hasn’t been able to do is win a game in Week 2. 

Burrow has started in five Week 2 games for the Bengals and he’s somehow gone 0-5 in those games. It’s been even worse for Zac Taylor, who’s 0-6 in Week 2 since being hired as the head coach. The Bengals haven’t won a Week 2 games since 2018 when Marvin Lewis was the coach. 

It’s definitely one of the more bizarre losing streaks in the NFL, especially when you consider that no other team has lost more than three games in a row in Week 2. 

Longest active Week 2 losing streaks
1. Bengals: Six games (Last win: 2018)
T-2: Panthers: Three games (Last win: 2021)
T-2: Bears: Three games (Last win: 2021)

The last time a team went through any type of streak like this came 11 years ago when the Jacksonville Jaguars lost seven games in a row in Week 2 from 2008 thru 2014, according to CBS Sports Research. In a wild coincidence, the Bengals will be looking to end their streak on Sunday against those same Jaguars (1 p.m. ET, CBS and Paramount+), who are a 3.5-point underdog. If the Bengals lose to Jacksonville, they’d become just the ninth team over the past 55 years to have a losing streak of at least seven games in Week 2. 

The Bengals’ Week 2 woes have mostly come because they’ve generally struggled at the start of the season under Taylor. During his six seasons on the job, they’ve gone 2-11 in the first two weeks and Taylor didn’t pick up that second win until last week when the Bengals outlasted the Cleveland Browns, 17-16, in their regular-season opener. 

Of course, when you have a streak like this, there’s usually some bad luck involved and that’s certainly been the case for the Bengals. Five of the six losses have come by just one score. 

Here’s a look at each Week 2 loss during the streak: 
2019: 49ers 41-17 over Bengals
2020: Browns 35-30 over Bengals
2021: Bears 20-17 over Bengals
2022: Cowboys 20-17 over Bengals
2023: Ravens 27-24 over Bengals
2024: Chiefs 26-25 over Bengals

In two of the past three years, the Bengals have lost on a field goal that came on the final play. In 2022, Brett Maher hit a 50-yard field goal as time expired to give the Cowboys the win. Last season, Harrison Butker one-upped that by hitting a 51-yarder to give Kansas City the victory. 

If the Bengals can beat the Jaguars, it will allow Burrow to improve to 2-0 for the first time in his career (Taylor would also get to 2-0 for the first time). The Bengals currently have a six-game winning streak dating back to last season, which is the longest active streak in the NFL. 

On the Jaguars’ end, they’re looking to get to 2-0 for the first time in Trevor Lawrence’s career. Jacksonville hasn’t opened the season with two straight wins since 2018 when Doug Marrone was coach and Blake Bortles was quarterback. 

The Bengals and Jags will be kicking off at 1 p.m. ET on CBS.