Cincinnati Bengals Preview and Prediction

Team Preview

The Cincinnati Bengals took a step back last season. After five straight playoff seasons (2011-15) that ended in wild card losses, the Bengals finished the 2016-17 season with a 6-9-1 mark.

The Bengals actually outscored their opponents by 10 points last year. What that means is that a lot of the games were close. That should give the team and its fans plenty of hope for this season, especially after making a couple of key offensive additions during the offseason.

Quarterback Andy Dalton will again lead the charge going into the 2017-18 season. Dalton finished with 4,206 yards and 18 touchdowns last year while completing nearly 65 percent of his passes.

Dalton now has a three-headed running back committee behind him after the team selected Joe Mixon in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft. Mixon joins Jeremy Hill and Giovani Bernard in the backfield. Hill finished with 839 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground while Bernard, who serves as more of a pass-catcher, added 337 rushing yards and 336 receiving yards. The trio should all see plenty of touches and be able to balance the workload so the group can stay healthy throughout the year.

The Bengals wide receiver group also picked up an addition during the offseason, as the team drafted first round speedster John Ross in the first round. A healthy A.J. Green could be huge for the team as a whole; last year, Green caught 66 passes for 964 yards and four scores in 10 games played. Brandon LaFell returns after a 64-catch, 862-yard, 6-TD season. That trio alone should serve as one of the better receiver groups in the league, but the team also has 2016 second-rounder Tyler Boyd, Cody Core, Alex Erickson and 2017 four round pick Josh Malone to turn to. The WR corps is both talented and stocked full of players, and I expect this group to have a really good season.

The Bengals also have a solid tight end in Tyler Eifert. Like Green, injuries plagued Eifert a season ago. His health will be key, as he scored five touchdowns in just eight games played.

On defense, veteran linebacker Vontaze Burfict will lead the team after the departure of fellow LB Karlos Dansby. Burfict tallied 101 total tackles a year ago. He will be joined at linebacker by former Arizona Cardinal Kevin Minter, Vincent Rey and 2017 fourth-rounder Carl Lawson.

The defensive line the Bengals boast should be one of the better ones in the league. Carlos Dunlap leads the way after recording eight sacks among his 49 total tackles last year. Geno Atkins tallied nine sacks and made the Pro Bowl. Veterans Pat Sims and Michael Johnson round the unit out while Will Clarke joins Andrew Billings (2016 fourth round, did not play last year), Ryan Glasgow (2017 fourth round) and Jordan Willis (2017 third round) as d-line depth.

In the secondary, Shawn Williams, who led the unit with 81 total tackles, hopes to overcome a recent elbow injury; if Williams has to miss any time, look for Derron Smith and Clayton Fejedelem to fill the gap. George Iloka (74 total tackles) serves as the team's other safety. At cornerback, Adam Jones and Dre Kirkpatrick will lead the way, after Jones serves a one-game suspension. Josh Shaw and Darqueze Dennard will serve as depth while 2016 first-rounder William Jackson III could see the field plenty after missing his entire rookie year with a torn pectoral.

2017-18 Schedule/Predictions 1 - vs Baltimore Ravens (L) 2 - vs Houston Texans (W) 3 - at Green Bay Packers (L) 4 - at Cleveland Browns (L) 5 - vs Buffalo Bills (L) 6 - BYE 7 - at Pittsburgh Steelers (L) 8 - vs Indianapolis Colts (L) 9 - at Jacksonville Jaguars (L) 10 - at Tennessee Titans (W) 11 - at Denver Broncos (L) 12 - vs Cleveland Browns (W) 13 - vs Pittsburgh Steelers (W) 14 - vs Chicago Bears (L) 15 - at Minnesota Vikings (L) 16 - vs Detroit Lions (L) 17 - at Baltimore Ravens (W)

Season Record: 5-11, 3-3 AFC North

While the Bengals revamped their offense after an injury-riddled season last year, I was surprised the team did not try and target some defensive help either in free agency or in the draft. I think the Bengals will be able to move the ball on offense but will have a harder time stopping opposing offenses as the defensive unit ages. A healthy year for the defense could easily put this team in the playoffs, but with no real additions to the unit, I see the Cincinnati Bengals falling well short of the playoffs and searching for some youth on defense heading into the 2018-19 season.

Next AFC Team Up - Buffalo Bills

Sources not listed in article: ESPN - stats; Ourlads - depth chart; Playoff Predictors - schedule/record projections.

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