CINCINNATI — The Falcons went to Cincinnati on Sunday with three victories in their last four games. They’d provided some evidence that they might be better than a lot of people think. Those inclined to dismiss the Falcons because of the quality of opponents should look around the NFL. The Falcons are one of several middling teams trying to become something more and, bottom line, they won half of their first six games.
Then the Bengals gave the Falcons a dose of reality. Cincinnati, favored by a touchdown, won 35-17 at Paycor Stadium. The Falcons were down by three scores five seconds into the second quarter and never got the deficit below 11 points.
It was the first lopsided loss of the year for the Falcons, whose other three defeats were by a combined margin of 11 points.
