Bengals vs. Patriots, NFL picks and predictions 2016: Tom Brady returns to Gillette to roast Cincinnati

Cincinnati-New England looked like one of the league’s biggest showdowns during the preseason. Now, after five weeks of football, the Bengals have sputtered to a 2-3 start and inspired little confidence in their playoff potential.

Only one expert across ESPN, CBS, and SB Nation was bold enough to pick an Andy Dalton revival on the East Coast. It’s easy to see why. The Pats eviscerated their last foe from the state of Ohio when they routed the Browns 33-13 in Cleveland. That game marked the first start of the season for Tom Brady, who threw for more than 400 yards before exiting in the fourth quarter.

A revved-up Brady could be terrible news for a Bengal defense that has struggled recently against the pass. First-year starter Trevor Siemian gashed them for 312 yards and four passing touchdowns back in Week 3. In Week 5, rookie Dak Prescott completed 75 percent of his passes and accounted for nearly 10 yards each time he threw the ball. Now a much more experienced quarterback will enter the fray with his sights set on dismantling the Cincinnati secondary.

If Brady brings the fire like he did against Cleveland, the Bengals will need Dalton to step up in kind. The sixth-year passer has thrown for more than 300 yards per game this fall but struggled to lead his team to the end zone. Cincinnati ranks 10th in the league in yards per game but just 24th when it comes to scoring. That’s created a team only capable of beating the NFL’s worst teams; each of the Bengals wins have come over 1-4 AFC East competitors.

Cincinnati’s 2-3 start leaves it two games behind the Steelers in the AFC North, and a Week 2 loss in Pittsburgh will only make it more difficult to climb back up the division standings. Beating New England would be a great start towards keeping a five-year postseason streak alive. After the Patriots, the Bengal schedule ramps down for games against Cleveland, Washington, and the New York Giants. An upset win on Sunday would set the foundation for a march back to the happy side of .500 and a spot in the wild card race.

But toppling Brady in Gillette Stadium is no easy feat. The Pats are 97-16 at home in games where their legendary passer starts. If Dalton can’t rally his troops to hand the future Hall of Famer his 17th defeat, it may signal the first winter without a postseason in southwestern Ohio since 2010.

ESPN provides the lone dissenter in this week’s picks; Dan Graziano is pulling for a Bengal upset. Over at CBS, the call is unanimous for the Patriots. It’s the same over at SB Nation, where nine experts and the OddsShark computer all agree Brady will make his return to Gillette Stadium a happy one.