RADIO
This article continues our team outlook series where we will break down each NFL team from a fantasy football perspective. We will cover the major changes on each roster from this off-season and project what the team will do in the upcoming year. Today we take a look at the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Cincinnati Bengals 2016 campaign was branded as a huge setback for the team. After making the postseason in the previous five straight seasons, the Bengals missed the playoffs last season. After enjoying efficient offensive success under former offensive coordinator Hue Jackson, Cincinnati took a step back under new offensive coordinator Ken Zampese. However, Zampese cannot take full responsibility for the setback as the team experienced the loss of star wide receiver A.J. Green, who went down midway through the season with a hamstring injury. Various injuries also plagued up and coming tight end Tyler Eifert, who missed time with ankle and back injuries.
On the defensive end, the Bengals saw a slight improvement upon the 2015 season. However, constant on-field as well as off-field incidents overshadowed their squad and served as a huge distraction for the team. Controversial linebacker Vontaze Burfict started the season serving a three game suspension for a hit on the defenseless Antonio Brown during the 2016 AFC Wild Card Game. The defense looked undisciplined, accumulating a slew of fines for unsportsmanlike conduct and horse collar tackles, to name a few. Will the Bengals bounce back after a disappointing season? And how do they stack up on the fantasy end of things? Let's take a look.
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Quarterback
Andy Dalton ended the 2015 season as one of the best fantasy quarterbacks. With a quarterback rating of 106.2, Dalton threw 25 touchdowns and only seven interceptions. He also threw for 3,250 yards and had a career best 66.1 completion percentage. Enter 2016 and paired with a new offensive coordinator, Dalton's production took a tumble. Though he saw a significant increase in passing yards, he ended the season with a disappointing 18 touchdowns and a 91.8 quarterback rating. His completion percentage dropped to 64.7 and he threw one pick more than he did in the previous year.
So how does the fantasy forecast look for the veteran quarterback as we enter the 2017 season? With the fourth easiest schedule this year and key offensive figures back and seemingly healthy, the prospect of fantasy success for the seventh year man out of Texas Christian University looks promising. His favorite receiver A.J. Green appears to be back at 100 percent after injuring his hamstring last season. The team drafted speedster John Ross with the ninth overall pick in this year's draft. He has also established a better rapport with Brandon LaFell and Tyler Boyd, which will help his fantasy value. Tyler Eifert is also there, if he can stay healthy.
With all of these weapons at Dalton's disposal, it would seem hard-pressed to think he won't bounce back this season. Though his offensive line is one of the worst in the league, Dalton's receiving corps more than make up for it. He isn't going to lead all quarterbacks in fantasy production but what you will get is someone that you can rely upon for efficient play. He will have his bad games, but he will also have his good ones too. If you are holding off on selecting a quarterback at your fantasy draft and need someone who can get you points on a consistent basis, look to Dalton. He is too good to let you down and will surpass many of the quarterbacks who are ranked ahead of him on the rankings lists.
Running Backs
Cincinnati began the 2016 season with a few familiar faces in the backfield. Jeremy Hill, who was entering his third season with the team, saw a drastic reduction in his efficiency in 2015 than that of his rookie season. Hill finished his first year in the league with 1,124 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. However, he failed to hit the 1,000 yards mark in any of his next two seasons after that, which included last season. Though he didn't lose a step in terms of touchdown production, his yards per carry fell significantly.
Giovani Bernard also returned for his fourth season as a Bengal. Though historically Bernard has seen his fair share of carries, he is mostly known for his catching ability out of the backfield. Bernard saw a total of five receiving touchdowns in his first two years but only had one in the two seasons following. In his defense, Bernard suffered a knee injury halfway through the 2016 season that kept him out for the remainder of the year.
Rex Burkhead also emerged as a waiver wire favorite towards the end of the regular season and filled in quite nicely. By the end week 17, Burkhead finished the season with 344 rushing yards as well as two scores. However, Burkhead won't be returning to the team as he packed his bags and headed to New England in hopes on finding some snaps in the crowded Pats' backfield.
Overall, Cincinnati finished the season 13th overall in rushing yards per game with just under 111 yards. They also finished with one touchdown per contest, good for 8th best in the league.
The upcoming season looks promising for Cincy in the rushing department. Giovani Bernard appears to be at full strength. Jeremy Hill is back for his fourth season with the club. The team also drafted Joe Mixon out of Oklahoma in the second round of the draft. With Bernard expected to continue to see a majority of the passing plays out of the backfield, Mixon and Hill will battle it out for the right to be the team's featured runner. Mixon was slated to be drafted in the early first round at the draft this offseason but saw his stock plummet after getting into a physical altercation with a female. Though Hill is technically slated to be the team's "starter," it is highly likely Mixon will progressively see a bulk of the Bengals' snaps as the season progresses. For this reason, he is slated to be drafter relatively early in fantasy drafts with Hill serving as a handcuff in later rounds. Bernard also has value, though mostly limited to PPR leagues.
Wide Receivers
Cincinnati entered the 2016 season with a new look as it relates to their receiving options. Marvin Jones packed his bags for Detroit while Mohamed Sanu high-tailed it to Atlanta.
Being down multiple solid receivers, the Bengals acquired the services of veteran Brandon LaFell, a reciever who saw efficient numbers with both Carolina and New England. They also drafted Tyler Boyd out of Pittsburgh with their second round pick. And they also had some guy named A.J. Green.
Overall, the Bengals were an efficient offensive team despite numerous injuries and a new direction under first-year offense coordinator Ken Zampese.
Entering this upcoming season, Cincinnati is anticipated to be much more productive offensively. A.J. Green is back at full strength and ready to begin his seventh season. Brandon LaFell will start opposite Green after having the second best season of his career last year. Tyler Boyd is expected to fill in at the slot and is much more comfortable and knowledgeable of the offense. And John Ross was selected in this years draft and will be expected to progressively see more action as the season matures.
With the exception of last year, Green has not accumulated less than 1,000 receiving yards in a season throughout his entire career. However, despite suffering the injury and only playing ten games in 2016, he still only narrowly fell short of that mark with 964 yards, respectively. Behind Antonio Brown, Odell Beckham and Julio Jones, Green is virtually a lock to be selected right after the three aforementioned receivers in fantasy drafts worldwide.
LaFell saw much success catching passes from Andy Dalton and finished the season with 862 receiving yards and six touchdowns. With Green’s season ending prematurely, he stepped in as the number one and took full advantage of it. He will likely fail to see similar numbers, that is unless Green finds himself injured again. He will also be battling it out eventually with Ross as the season matures and will likely get the bulk of his production at the beginning of the season.
As for Ross, he is a work in progress. Coming off a slew of injuries throughout his college career will force Marvin Lewis to slowly ease him into the NFL lifestyle. Though he has the potential to be an elite wide receiver in the league, his fantasy value is very limited this season. He will likely see his fantasy stock rise at drafts around this time next season.
Tyler Boyd will get his looks out of the slot but nothing that is going to win you your fantasy league. He will score some touchdowns, just not on a routine basis. He finished his rookie season with 54 receptions, good for 603 yards and one score. He will likely see the same type of numbers by the end of Week 17.
Tight Ends
The tight end position in Cindy begins and ends with the health of Tyler Eifert. After a monstrous 2015 season that saw him rack up 615 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns, Eifert made the pro bowl. Good news, right? Nope. The team’s first round pick out of Notre Dame in 2013 would go on to suffer a broken ankle during the game and forced him to miss his first eight games last year. Despite catching five touchdown passes, he didn’t look like the guy from the year before.
Eifert is ready to go again in hopes of playing his first full season in the league. Without a doubt, he could be one of the best in the league as demonstrated by his efficient play throughout the years. But can he stay healthy? If you are willing to take a gamble and IF he stays injury free, there is a good chances that he finishes the season as a top five tight end.
Kicker
Cincinnati opened last season with veteran Mike Nugent, who had also spent the previous six seasons with the club, once again responsible for kicking duties. However, things didn’t go as planned as he posted one of the worst seasons of his career. Nugent was ultimately released by the team in December after missing an extra point in each game over five straight contests. To remedy the situation, journeyman kicker Randy Bullock was brought in to assume kicking responsibilities and ended his 2016 with the club going an efficient 5-for-6 in field goal attempts as well as a perfect 6-for-6 in PATs.
Bullock will once again Start the season as the kicker after narrowly winning the rights to the spot over fifth round draft pick Jake Elliot. Bullock is nowhere to be found on the draft rankings as a boat load of kickers are anticipated to go ahead of him. He is also not out of the woods in terms of keeping his job either as the team hopes to keep Elliot for the practice squad and would undoubtedly replace Bullock at the first sign of any issues. In any event, unless Bullock demonstrates fantasy efficiency, he will likely be absent from a lot of fantasy teams this upcoming season.
Defense/Special Teams
We already got into specifics about the ups and downs of the Bengals defense over the years. However, despite all of the talent on that side of the field, their success depends solely on one word, discipline. Though the team is loaded with some very, very talented players, numerous penalities and "dirty" play has hindered the overall success of the team. Reference the 2016 playoff game against rival Pittsburgh that saw two game-costing penalties from the notoriously naughty duo of Adam Jones and Vontaze Burfict. These two haven't learned either as Burfict will enter the season missing the first three games due to a dirty hit on a defenseless player during preseason play. Oh, and back to Jones, he was arrested in January for assault and will miss some time as well. Despite the talent and potential, these guys never learn. Stay away from them if you know what's good for you.
Overall
The Bengals are hoping to get back to their winning ways and with good play, comes good fantasy performances. A.J. Green will fly off the board without a doubt and is anticipated to be selected in the first round of drafts throughout the land. Joe Mixon is a favorite, especially in dynasty leagues as it is anticipated that he assumes the lead rushing role eventually. Wide reciever John Ross will mold into a good, if not great player as time rolls on. Same with wide reciever Tyler Boyd. Jeremy Hill will be a solid handcuff option and Giovani Bernard will get his points, especially in PPR leagues. Can Tyler Eifert stay healthy and be the dominant player he once was? Will Vontaze Burfict stop acting like a bonehead and actually live up to IDP hype? We will find out this upcoming season.
