Chad Johnson’s Bold Bengals Prediction Shocks Fans and Experts Alike

So here we are again, Bengals fans—could this be the year the tides finally turn? Chad Johnson, aka Ocho Cinco, isn’t mincing words. After the Bengals locked down Trey Hendrickson with a fat one-year contract, Johnson boldly throws down the gauntlet: a Super Bowl appearance is on the horizon. Now, that’s a spicy take considering the defense’s well-documented struggles. But hey, if the team can nudge their defense up from the cellar to around 15th in the league, Johnson reckons Joe Burrow and his electric arsenal—think Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins—will do the rest. Sounds enticing, right? But will Hendrickson’s sack wizardry be the magic ingredient to push Cincinnati over the edge? Only time will tell, but with Ocho’s prediction hanging in the air, the AFC North better pay attention.

The Cincinnati Bengals finally reached an agreement with Trey Hendrickson.

The All-Pro pass rusher is getting a hefty raise in a one-year reworked contract before possibly becoming a free agent after this season.

With the deal in place, former Bengals star Chad Johnson predicted that they would go all the way to the Super Bowl.

“We don’t need our defense to be top five, top 10, just get us somewhere around 15 to 16. I’ll see y’all boys in February. I know one thing: The AFC North goes through Cincinnati,” Johnson said.

Ocho reacts to Trey Hendrickson’s new deal and says the Bengals are Super Bowl bound @ShannonSharpe @ochocinco #NightcapShow pic.twitter.com/DNRaYtV5GF

— Nightcap (@NightcapShow_) August 26, 2025

Johnson said if the beleaguered Bengals defense can get to the middle of the pack, the offense will be good enough to take care of the rest.

That’s not necessarily a hot take, as everybody knows what quarterback Joe Burrow is capable of when he has the ball in his hands.

He has two 1,000-yard wide receivers in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and he’s arguably the best pure passer in football.

Even so, that wasn’t nearly enough last season.

Despite Burrow’s best efforts and MVP-caliber numbers, the Bengals didn’t make the playoffs, primarily because of their subpar defense.

Hendrickson led the NFL with 17.5 sacks last season, and he will be a Defensive Player of the Year candidate again this year.

Whether that will be enough for the Bengals to live up to Johnson’s prediction remains to be seen.

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