And the last shall be first…in the order in which I’m choosing to review each AFC North team’s makeup and prospects for success in The NFL Year of Our COVID-19…in 2020. I’ll run down the rosters and identify a few impact players, with some reasonably obvious conclusions you may or may not agree with, but hey…it’s FOOTBALL.
We begin with last season’s AFC North “cellar dweller”, the Cincinnati Bengals.
After posting a paltry two wins in 2019 in an unconventional rebuilding effort (or was it?), the Bengals seem ready to expand their horizons a bit more under second-year coach Zac Taylor, whose underwhelming 2019 results landed him the first overall pick in the 2020 draft in LSU QB Joe Burrow. Gone is longtime QB Andy Dalton, leaving the Bengals with very little NFL experience (let alone starting NFL experience) at the position, but there’s little question the Bengals needed to select a new signal caller regardless of Dalton’s status. Taylor wanted the ability to groom a QB to match his offensive schemes; it’s pretty obvious Dalton wasn’t going to be that guy, having been a long-time holdover of the Marvin Lewis regime, and Burrow “checks the boxes” of what most presume a top-tier NFL QB prospect should be. Given his youth, it may take time for Burrow to establish himself, but the reviews from training camp have been overwhelmingly positive. Best of luck, kid. Most rookies always need a little.
Roster
The Bengals’ biggest weakness last season was a pronounced lack of depth, as free agency and injuries combined to render a promising roster into a poor one seemingly overnight. The Bengals have essentially three rookies starting on offense in 2020; the aforementioned Burrow, 2019 “redshirt” (due to injury) LT Jonah Williams, and 2020 second-round WR Tee Higgins. All three positions were particularly troublesome in 2019, so it’s encouraging to see the Taylor regime addressing obvious weaknesses. The biggest name on the offensive roster remains WR A.J. Green, followed by recent extendee RB Joe Mixon. It’s not difficult to imagine this group scoring a lot of points once they’re actually familiar with each other.
Defensively, things aren’t quite as rosy. Longtime DT Geno Atkins remains an underrated force underneath and equally-tenured DE Carlos Dunlap will continue his quiet, steady output, but the rest of the defensive front seven could struggle. Massive NT D.J. Reader should force a lot of runs to the outside, but a suspect, speed-challenged LB corp may have trouble containing anyone that actually gets there. The secondary is still very much a cliched “work in progress”, but there’s no denying the two-month, possibly season-ending loss of free agent CB Trae Waynes (pectoral injury) is going to sting. Barring a late free agent pickup, the Bengals will try to get through the season with a combination of CBs William Jackson III, Mackensie Alexander, and Darius Phillips, all of whom have suffered their share of roster-killing injuries as well. Safeties Vonn Bell and Jessie Bates are proven, solid commodities, so their presence should offset some of the setbacks the CB corp is sure to deal with.
Special teams personnel remain the same as last season, with K Randy Bullock and P Kevin Huber set to continue their roles.
Breakout Potential
Despite his rocky personal history, RB Joe Mixon is a legitimate candidate for a 1,500-yard rushing season, and it couldn’t arrive at a more perfect time to alleviate pressure on Burrow during his rookie year. This will be contingent on an effective offensive line, which is never a given in Cincinnati. If LT Jonah Williams progresses as expected, Mixon could finally begin to shed his “batterer” label and become one of the more effective players the Bengals have had at RB in decades.
Prediction
The 2020 Bengals will be better than the 2019 Bengals, but that’s not exactly a difficult mark to reach. As noted, the Bengals will improve as they gain experience, so things could be rather ugly early. I see a 6-10 record at best, but that’s not criticism – it’s a four-game improvement; most clubs would happily accept that anytime.
Next up: the Cleveland Browns
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