Health of Vontaze Burfict and Key Players Remains Bengals' Focal Point After Bye

It's fun to chat about how healthy the undefeated Cincinnati Bengals have been on the march to 6-0 at the Week 7 bye.

Yet what seems lost is the fact the team isn't 100 percent healthy yet.

In fact, for all the chatter about great health, the team continues to miss first-round offensive tackle Cedric Ogbuehi and one of the NFL's best linebackers, Vontaze Burfict.

There's no questioning the Bengals have had an unprecedented run of health over the course of the first six weeks of the season. The Wall Street Journal provided quite the staggering look at how great Cincinnati's luck has been thus far:

For now, gone are the days where the coaching staff has to shuffle names along the offensive line. Gone are the days a hodgepodge of names suit up in the secondary and the offense hopes it can squeeze every last drop of talent out of a wideout corps suited for special teams, not the base offense.

Again, unprecedented. Even so, the injury bug can and will strike the Bengals as the grueling season wears onward to the postseason. It might do it especially hard, too.

Which is why the status of Ogbuehi should be a focal point for observers.

The Texas A&M product was never going to be rushed into action, not with Andrew Whitworth on the left side and Andre Smith on the right. The addition of Jake Fisher in the second round only reinforced the idea.

Frank Victores/Associated Press

But remember last year? Remember the failed Marshall Newhouse experiment? Remember Andre Smith only appearing in nine games? Remember how the team was lucky to even find Eric Winston late in the season?

The Cincinnati offensive line looks incredible right now, but Smith and Kevin Zeitler have already left games at points with injuries. Center Russell Bodine continues to struggle in the face of strong competition. Fisher and Winston are there for insurance, but the last thing the Bengals need is to see a season derailed because the newfound potent passing attack receives a grounding due to injuries.

Burfict is even more important.

Poll folks about what Cincinnati's biggest weakness is right now, and the most common answer will be the defense's propensity to give up the big play. Whether it's blown coverages, players out of position or missed tackles, the Bengals surrender 370.7 yards per game.

A few of these issues go away with Burfict back on the field. He ranked as the fourth-best 4-3 outside linebacker in the league in 2013 at Pro Football Focus before his injury-riddled 2014 and starting this year on the physically unable to perform list.

As great as Vincent Rey has been for the Bengals in spot duty this year, the play-calling duties back in Burfict's hands could work wonders. He's also one of the team's most athletic linebackers, meaning fewer lapses in coverages in the intermediate passing game.

For his part, Burfict continues to make appearances and looks good, as NFL Network's Albert Breer captured before the team's game against the Buffalo Bills:

The importance of both players returning to the team isn't lost on head coach Marvin Lewis, who revealed both will continue to work through the bye week on the hopes of reactivation soon, per Alex Marvez of FoxSports.com:

"

They're here continuing to work now (during the bye week). These are a couple of critical days for them to not have any setbacks. It's really been good to watch the smiles come on their faces as they see themselves having turned the corner now and getting ready to play NFL football.

"

The Bengals have until December 1 to activate both players or shut them down for the year.

For now, Cincinnati has persevered without one of its best defensive players, allowing Burfict the luxury of taking his time in recovery. There's no question his absence has helped to create one of the team's bigger weaknesses, though, so sooner or later, the coaching staff has to hope the extra off time results in a full return to form.

In a perfect world, Cincinnati gets key players back just in time for a winter stretch that leads to the postseason.

For a team in which almost everything has gone right, it's almost expected. It also might be a necessity, because the road will only get more difficult from here.

Stats courtesy of NFL.com and accurate as of October 22. All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus.