5 scapegoats if things go wrong for the Bengals in 2022

The Cincinnati Bengals came up short in the Super Bowl earlier this year and while fans expect them to be right back in the running to make the big game again this season, what happens if things go south? Who will be the scapegoats? 

Not even the most optimistic of Cincinnati Bengals fans would have predicted this past season to play out how it did. A team that won just four games the season prior and had their young quarterback returning from ankle surgery didn’t exactly scream “Super Bowl contender” yet the Bengals overcame the odds and got to the final game of the season.

While things didn’t go their way in the Super Bowl, the team should still vie to get back during the 2022 season.

With all of that said, however, the Super Bowl hangover is a real thing and if it hits the Bengals, who would be the scapegoats on the team? Let’s take a look.

5. Mike Brown

The Bengals don’t have a general manager but owner Mike Brown handles the duties that a GM typically would. Fans have grown frustrated with Brown’s penny-pinching over the years but the team has made moves in free agency recently and it’s paid off.

Last year, Cincinnati added Trey Hendrickson, Chidobe Awuzie, Mike Hilton, B.J. Hill, and Larry Ogunjobi (to name a few), all of whom became key playmakers for the team’s rebuilding defense.

This year, after the offensive line greatly disappointed in the Super Bowl, Brown and the front office went to work in shoring up the position by signing three free-agents to help out. Brown and Katie Blackburn have been putting in more work to make the team better but if things go downhill in 2022, he’ll get backlash.