Bengals: 3 things to watch vs. the Vikings in Week 1
By Riley Thomas
In the Cincinnati Bengals‘ season-opening clash with the Minnesota Vikings, there will be several key areas to keep an eye on.
The Bengals versus Vikings matchup is expected to be one of the more closely contested games during Week 1 of the NFL season. This is for various reasons, one of which is both teams have a lot in common.
On paper, the Bengals and Vikings are starting to build pretty good rosters. But the key is will they perform? Can players on both rosters live up to expectations?
Both teams’ offensive lines struggled last season and needed to improve since they both have a lot of talent in their respective passing offenses. Honestly, both rosters have the chance of being good or solid teams this season.
Minnesota is likely favored simply due to having more experience compared to the Bengals. The Vikings have long-time, established starters like Kirk Cousins, Adam Thielen, Dalvin Cook, Anthony Barr, and Harrison Smith. Cincinnati will be breaking in a lot of youth this year, with several of their expected best players being only in their second season in the NFL.
Cincinnati will need to perform in several key areas to come out with a win.