Expectations are low for the Cincinnati Bengals this year, but several factors point to the Bengals overachieving those predictions.
The Bengals look different in many spots than they did at this time last year. Unfortunately, those changes have not been enough to convince the NFL community that they are an improved team.
In a variety of different power rankings, people have said Cincinnati could end up worse than they did last year. NBC Sports has the Bengals a little higher than other sites, listing Cincinnati as the 28th best team in the league. NFL.com has slotted Cincinnati in as their 30th best team this year.
These two rankings are fairly indicative of how the football landscape views the Bengals but I believe Cincinnati will be better than expected.
The Bengals have had a few tough years in recent history and picked in the top five in each of the last two drafts. It can be hard to remember the days when Cincinnati was going to the playoffs continually and competing within the NFC North.
I still believe this team is a year or two away from that level of success, but 2021 should see a significant step in the right direction. Here are three reasons the Bengals will do better in 2021 than you think.