Fansided

Fantasy Football: Cincinnati Bengals Season Preview

By Bruce Matson

facebooktwitterreddit

Dec 7, 2014; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals quarterback

Andy Dalton

(14) against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Paul Brown Stadium. The Steelers won 42-21. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports

Cincinnati Bengals Season Preview

The Bengals had a good season last year posting a 10-5-1 record, as they made it to the playoffs where they lost to the Indianapolis Colts 26-10 in the wild card round. The Bengals have a lot of assets on their team that are valuable in fantasy. They have one of the top wide receivers in the league in AJ Green, and they are one of the few teams in the league that can roster two fantasy relevant running backs with Giovanni Bernard and Jeremy Hill. The Bengals are a team to earmark when it comes to fantasy football production for 2015.

More from Fantasy Football

Quarterback

Andy Dalton

Dalton is a QB2 with QB1 upside. In 2013 he finished the season ranked 5th in the league amongst QBs in fantasy points with 288 on the year.  Dalton’s production curtailed during his 2014 campaign totaling 223 fantasy points, which had him ranked at 19 at the end of last season. There’s a possibility that Dalton could finish this season a top-12 quarterback, but I think it’s highly unlikely he cracks the top-5 like he did in 2013. Dalton is a solid QB2 that you can stream into your lineup depending on his matchup for the week.

Running Back 
Jeremy Hill

Hill broke out as a rookie last year during the last half of the season to finish the season ranked as the 10th best running back in fantasy last year with 219.9 fantasy points in PPR leagues. Hill is going to be a candidate to finish the season as a top-10 running back, and he should be drafted as a RB1 in your fantasy draft.

Giovani Bernard

Bernard had a down year last season, due to missing some games because of injuries, and losing snaps to Jeremy Hill. Bernard is a valuable asset in the passing game for the Bengals. Bernard averaged 3.3 receptions a game last season, which proves Bernard to be reliable in PPR leagues by averaging 3 points a game just by his receptions.  Even with missing 3 games and losing snaps to Jeremy Hill, Bernard finished the season as RB16 with 192.90 fantasy points. Bernard finished the season as a solid RB2 in PPR leagues. Bernard is going to be a sneaky buy this year in redraft leagues.

Live Feed

MLB Ohio Promo Codes: Win $450 Bonus at DraftKings, Bet365 and FanDuel!
MLB Ohio Promo Codes: Win $450 Bonus at DraftKings, Bet365 and FanDuel! /

Blog Red Machine

  • FanDuel New York Promo Gives $100 Bonus GUARANTEED on ANY Bet Today!BuffaLowDown
  • Claim $1,350 Bonus Backing the Mets Today With FanDuel and Caesars New York Promo CodesRising Apple
  • FanDuel Illinois Promo Code: Win $100 GUARANTEED Betting $5 on White Sox TodaySouthside Showdown
  • FanDuel Kansas Promo Gives $100 Bonus GUARANTEED Backing the Chiefs!Arrowhead Addict
  • Women’s World Cup Promos: Win $250 Bonus Betting on ANY Match at DraftKings and FanDuel! Betsided

    • Wide Receiver

    AJ Green

    AJ Green is a stud wide receiver, and he justifies being drafted in the late 1st-mid 2nd round. AJ Green finished the season ranked 24th among wide receivers in fantasy points with 206.80 pts. That is outstanding, factoring that he missed 3 games last year, and played only a portion of 4 other games due to a foot injury. Due to Green being injured last season you may be able to acquire him with a discount during your draft this year.

    Marvin Jones

    Jones missed the entire 2014 season due to a foot/ankle injury. In 2013 Jones proved to be one of Dalton’s favorite targets by catching 51 receptions for 712 yards and 10 TDs. Jones is going to be available late in your drafts and you should be able to snag him off the waiver wire after the first couple weeks of the season. Jones is in a great situation. He has AJ Green on the other side of the field drawing all the coverage, so he is going to see single coverage often, which will give him a lot of opportunities to get open. Jones is going to be a sleeper in drafts this season.

    Mohamed Sanu

    Sanu filled in for Marvin Jones last season. He’s going to have to battle Jones for the 2nd wide receiver spot on the team. The receiver starting the opposite side or Green is going to be a decent flex play in fantasy. The question is who is going to be the starter? My guess is Jones if he is healthy.

    Tight End

    Tyler Eifert

    Eifert is the guy to own here for tight end. Last season Eifert dislocated his elbow during the first game of the season, which caused him to miss the rest of the season. Eifert is going to be a trendy tight end to draft in the later rounds of your fantasy draft this year. He’s a highly athletic pass catcher who is going to be a match-up nightmare for defenses if he can stay healthy. Eifert is a candidate to break out this year. I recommend drafting him this year in your re-draft league.

    Defense/Special Teams

    Last season, the Bengals defense finished the season ranked 24th in the league, which was a bit of bummer, because they were expected to be a top defense last season. The Bengals had 5 games where they scored 10 fantasy points or more (ESPN standard scoring). The Bengals should do a little better this year on defense. They signed DE Michael Johnson, and they should have MLB Vontaze Burfict back this year, since he missed a lot of games last season due to injuries. The Bengals defense is a candidate to finish with in the top-15 this year if they can stay healthy.

    Hit me up Twitter @bmatz08 for advice for your fantasy team.

    Next: Why C.J. Anderson Will Be Elite In 2015

    More from FanSided

    Home/Fantasy Football