The best the Bengals can finish now is 10-7, and that requires them running the table from here out, with two games remaining vs. the Steelers. The playoff dream isn’t dead, but it’s certainly on life support. Early in Sunday night’s thriller, everything was going the Chargers’ way, and anyone watching could see how disgusted Joe Burrow and the gang looked as the Bengals fell into a 27-6 hole. Incredibly, they not only pulled out of that, tying the game at 27-all, but the Bengals absolutely looked like the better team at that point, almost destined to pull off an all-time comeback. Instead, they took what was most likely another step toward missing the postseason, and it happened in the stadium where their Super Bowl hopes were crushed a few years ago. At their best, the Bengals can hang with virtually anyone in the NFL. At their worst, they’re just as capable of giving games away. Sadly, that has become the theme for the season: close, painful losses caused by self-inflicted wounds.