After starting 0-2 for a third-consecutive season, the Bengals may have hoped their Week 3 matchup against the Commanders at Paycor Stadium on Monday Night Football would be a “get right” game.

However, the Bengals and their supporters are now likely asking themselves “What went wrong?” following a 38-33 loss that dropped them to 0-3 early in the 2024 regular season.

Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels was the proverbial rookie sensation, completing an astounding 21 of 23 passes for 254 yards and two touchdowns. Daniels also used his legs to find paydirt a third time.

Back to the Bengals. Despite the loss, Burrow was his usual Joe Brrr self on Monday night, completing 29 of 38 passes for 324 yards and three touchdowns.

Cincinnati should not be 0-3, not with an offense as potent as any in the NFL. The Bengals may have traded veteran running back Joe Mixon to Houston in March, but Zack Moss, who they signed as a free agent in the offseason, is a promising enough young back. Besides, what about that receiving corps that includes Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins? If Chase and Higgins aren’t the best receiving duo in the NFL, they’re certainly in the conversation.

The trade of Mixon, for financial reasons, was one of a few roster hits Cincinnati has endured the past couple of springs. Safety Jessie Bates also left as a free agent during the 2023 offseason. Managing a roster only figures to get harder for the Bengals in light of the rich contract Burrow signed in September of 2023.

However, as long as Cincinnati has Burrow, that should be enough to remain relevant, no? After all, we’re talking about a talent often placed just behind Patrick Mahomes when discussing the NFL’s current hierarchy at the quarterback position.

To repeat: the Bengals had gotten off to 0-2 starts the previous two years. Following a magical 2021 campaign that ended when it lost the Super Bowl by a mere whisker, Cincinnati began the 2022 regular season 0-2. Thankfully, the Bengals were able to find their balance and win the AFC North title for a second-straight season before losing in the AFC Championship Game at Kansas City in heartbreaking fashion. Cincinnati again started 0-2 in 2023 but again looked like it had righted its ship before a wrist injury forced Burrow to miss the final seven games. The Bengals put up a noble fight down the stretch but were ultimately eliminated from playoff contention by season’s end.

Beginning the season 0-2 is one thing, but what about 0-3? As per the Sporting News, since 1990, only four of 162 teams have made the playoffs after starting 0-3. Just one squad has accomplished that feat this century. Overall, only six teams have done it in NFL history–1981 Jets; 1982 Buccaneers; 1992 Chargers; 1995 Lions; 1998 Bills; and 2018 Texans.

If you’re a Bengals fan, you may take comfort in knowing that none of those six teams had a quarterback the caliber of Burrow but were still able to overcome long odds. Burrow is a special kind of talent, and it’s going to take a special kind of effort for these Bengals to come out of hibernation and make it back to the postseason.

Either that, or Cincinnati’s window officially closed when it signed Burrow to that rich, new contract extension just months after making it to its second-straight AFC title game.

If the championship window hasn’t closed, it’s only because Burrow’s considerable talents have kept it open.

Open or closed, the Bengals are officially Joe Burrow’s team now, and it’s up to him to dig them out of this 0-3 hole they currently find themselves in.