Will a new young core lead the Bengals to a drastic turnaround in 2020?
For much of the past decade, the Bengals were a playoff constant that had a stable nucleus and an experienced head coach. Eventually, Cincinnati started to stagnate and not get back to their stranglehold on the 4:30 PM Saturday Wild Card game. This led to key guys such as Marvin Lewis, Andy Dalton, and Vontaze Burfict being let go, and the beginning of a new era in Cincinnati.
Now this is the Joe Burrow show. Burrow comes into Cincinnati after a historic college season in which he put up 65 total touchdowns and 5,671 passing yards en route to a National Championship for his LSU Tigers. Burrow will go from arguably one of the most talented college teams in history to a Bengals squad that was 2-14 last year.
Zac Taylor will return after a 2-14 season in which the Bengals lost 8 of those 14 games by one possession or less. There are some very talented players left over such as Geno Atkins, Joe Mixon, and Carlos Dunlap. Getting AJ Green back will also be a nice boost for this offense that also added Tee Higgins at the top of the 2nd round.
With a beginning of a new generation in Cincy, let’s take a deeper look at the Bengals 2019 season, 2020 offseason, and what lies ahead in 2020.
2019 Team Ranks
| Total Offense | 26th (5169 yards) |
| Passing Offense | 19th (3652 yards) |
| Rushing Offense | 25th (1517 yards) |
| Total Defense | 29th (6299 yards allowed) |
| Passing Defense | 21st (3917 yards allowed) |
| Rushing Defense | 32nd (2382 yards allowed) |
| PPG | 17.4 |
| PPG Allowed | 26.3 |
| Offensive Line Ranks | |
| PFF | 30th |
| Football Outsiders (Run Block) | 26th |
| Football Outsiders (Pass Block) | 20th |
Coaching Staff Changes
| LB Coach – Al Golden replaces Tem Lukabu |
| CB Coach – Steve Jackson replaces Daronte Jones |
Offseason Additions
| DJ Reader DT |
| Trae Waynes CB |
| Vonn Bell SS |
| Xavier Su’a-Filo G |
| Mackensie Alexander CB |
| LeShaun Sims CB |
| Josh Bynes LB |
| Mike Thomas WR (no not that one) |
Offseason Losses
| Tyler Eifert TE |
| Clayton Fejedelem S |
| John Miller G |
| Andrew Billings DT |
| Andy Dalton QB |
| Nick Vigil OLB |
| LaRoy Reynolds LB |
| Tony McRae CB |
2020 NFL Draft
| Round 1 (1) – Joe Burrow QB LSU |
| Round 2 (33) – Tee Higgins WR Clemson |
| Round 3 (65) – Logan Wilson LB Wyoming |
| Round 4 (107) – Akeem Davis-Gaither LB Appalachian State |
| Round 5 (147) – Khalid Kareem Edge Notre Dame |
| Round 6 (180) – Hakeem Adeniji G Kansas |
| Round 7 (215) – Markus Bailey LB Purdue |
2020 Schedule with record vs opponents since 2017
| Week 1 – vs Los Angeles Chargers 4:05 PM ET CBS | 0-1 |
| Week 2 – at Cleveland Browns 8:20 PM ET NFL Network (TNF) | 3-3 |
| Week 3 – at Philadelphia Eagles 1 PM ET CBS | 0-0 |
| Week 4 – vs Jacksonville Jaguars 1 PM ET CBS | 0-2 |
| Week 5 – at Baltimore Ravens 1 PM ET CBS | 2-4 |
| Week 6 – at Indianapolis Colts 1 PM ET FOX | 2-0 |
| Week 7 – vs Cleveland Browns 1 PM ET CBS | 3-3 |
| Week 8 – vs Tennessee Titans 1 PM ET CBS | 0-1 |
| Week 9 – BYE | |
| Week 10 – at Pittsburgh Steelers 1 PM ET FOX | 0-6 |
| Week 11 – at Washington 1 PM ET CBS | 0-0 |
| Week 12 – vs New York Giants 1 PM ET FOX | 0-0 |
| Week 13 – at Miami Dolphins 1 PM ET CBS | 1-1 |
| Week 14 – vs Dallas Cowboys 1 PM ET FOX | 0-0 |
| Week 15 – vs Pittsburgh Steelers 8:15 PM ET ESPN (MNF) | 0-6 |
| Week 16 – at Houston Texans 1 PM ET CBS | 0-1 |
| Week 17 – vs Baltimore Ravens 1 PM ET CBS | 2-4 |
Miscellaneous Notes
| Zac Taylor entering his 2nd season as head coach |
| Jonah Williams will play his first season after missing rookie year with torn acl |
| AJ Green missed all of 2019 season with torn ligaments in ankle |
| 3rd worse turnover differential in 2019 (-14) |
| Worst road record in the NFL in 2019 (0-8) |
| 2019 Offense Play Selection |
| Pass – 63.3% |
| Rush – 36.7% |
| PFF Top 5 Graded Players in 2019 |
| 1. Carlos Dunlap LE 89.7 |
| 2. D.J. Reader NT 85.4 |
| 3. Josh Bynes ILB 80.0 |
| 4. Geno Atkins DT 76.2 |
| 5. Joe Mixon RB 75.3 |
| Players who opted out of 2020 season |
| Josh Tupou NT |
| Isaiah Prince RT |
Burning Question: Can this offensive line effectively protect Joe Burrow?
Bottom Line: This is an intriguing offense on paper. If AJ Green can stay healthy, Joe Burrow will have 4 big body targets at WR. They should have a few games where they explode for 30+ points. Defensively, they bring a very stout defensive line, but question marks in the back end. Run defense specifically is an aspect I see them struggling with, especially when having to play Lamar Jackson twice a year.
Cincinnati is not quite ready for the playoffs in a tough division. Burrow will go through the traditional ups and downs for a rookie in the NFL. However, the future is bright with him leading the way.
Predicted Win Range: 4-6
