2009 NFL Preview: Cincinnati Bengals

By JFein:

The Cincinnati Bengals are quite an enigma. They have a really good QB, one of the best wide receivers in the NFL, and yet, no one is thinking that this team has a chance in hell of coming close to competing in the AFC North. And even though they are my 3rd favorite NFL team (Eagles #1, Chargers #2), I agree with those critics. So without further ado, here is your 2009 NFL Preview of the Cincinnati Bengals!

Heeeerrrrrre's Carson: Carson Palmer used to be one of the best QBs in the NFL. But then he played a playoff game against Pittsburgh. Since then, his entire career has gone straight down hill. Whether it's his inconsistency, the Bengals as a team relying too much on the pass due to a lack of running game, or injuries, since that ill-fated home playoff game, it seems like everything has unraveled for the Bengals and Palmer and if one of those problems was not present, you can be sure that another one of them was. It also does not help that the Bengals have no defense whatsoever to rely on when Palmer is struggling or injured, but that's another story.

Chad OchoCinco: Next to T.O., perhaps the most controversial wide receiver is none other than Chad OchoCinco (seriously, which is it? Ochocinco, OchoCinco, or Ocho Cinco?) of the Cincinnati Bengals. Make no mistake about it, the man is talented, but his ego is just way too big for him to ever be a great receiver. The constant unnecessary celebration penalties that he gets is enough to bury a team for when you kickoff at your own 15 yard line, the opposing team gets great field position and is more likely than not to come away with points on the following drive especially taking into the fact of the Bengals defense (more on that below). And just as an aside, "ocho cinco" does not mean "eighty-five" but rather "eight five". Eighty-five in Spanish is "ochenta y cinco". You can thank online translators for that one....

The Bengals defense: Oy ve. What good is it when you're offense scores 45 points only to see the defense give up 48 points. That is the Bengals defense in a nutshell. You have to give credit where credit is due, though. They did try to remedy that by drafting Ray Maualuga out of USC. And they also now have Roy Williams the Safety. But will that be enough for the Bengals? To be frank, I would be shocked if it was. Then again, anything is an improvement over what they had.

Schedule: While the Bengals are one of the 13 lucky ones to play the Detroit Lions this year, the rest of their schedule is not so glamorous, including back-to-back-to-back games against Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Baltimore Weeks 3-5 with the latter 2 being on the road. They have some winnable games this year, but the division that they compete in is way too much for them. If they were in a weaker division, I'd give them a fighters chance at possibly making the playoffs, but not in one of the best divisions in football. No way.

Video: A look at the Bengals rookies this year with Disturbed in the background.



Prediction 6-10, 4th place AFC North. I said it before, if their division was different, then maybe, just maybe, they would have an outside chance of making it this year. But 2 games against the Ravens, Steelers, and Browns is just too much for this team. I only say the Browns because let's just say that the style of games that they play absolutely works against the Bengals defense.