Bengals gaze upon bright future with Joe Burrow under center

The Cincinnati Bengals were awful last year, but the reward was Joe Burrow and a ton of hope heading into the future.

Best-case scenario

In an ideal world, Joe Burrow lives up to the high expectations placed upon him and successfully sneaks the Bengals into the expanded playoffs, where they could serve as an agent of chaos as underdogs.

Cincinnati did it under worse circumstances in 2011 with Andy Dalton, so don’t count it out now with the reigning Heisman winner, a revamped defense, and an exciting cast of skill players.

Worst-case scenario

The biggest question mark surrounding the Bengals isn’t Burrow, it’s the line tasked with protecting him. Worst-case, the unit continues to flounder, causing Cincinnati’s new man under center to struggle in his transition to the pros.

On top of the uncertainty in the trenches, the coaching staff is unproven and a number of key players have earned the “injury-prone” designation. If those problems continue as well, Who Dey Nation could see their team picking in the top five again.

Biggest offseason move

While the Bengals uncharacteristically made a number of splashes in free agency, such as signing D.J. Reader, Vonn Bell, and Trae Waynes, the biggest move still has to be drafting Burrow. If the hype is to be believed, the LSU product will be the NFL’s next big thing and he could bring the playoffs to the Queen City.

Draft pick who makes the big impact

Again, Burrow should easily make the biggest impact out of the Bengals’ draft class. He was handed the keys to the franchise from day one and looks poised to use the arsenal of weapons the front office provided him to begin his tenure in stripes.

Overall expectations

The Bengals should make a considerable jump from what fans saw a year ago. Head coach Zac Taylor has a full year under his belt now and seems to have firmly established his culture. The club has gotten a number of impact players back from injuries, such as A.J. Green and Jonah Williams. Nearly every position group was improved via the draft or free agency as well.

While there’s a lot to be optimistic about, it won’t always be a smooth path. Joe Burrow will likely have some rookie growing pains. The many new faces set to grace the halls of Paul Brown Stadium will take some time to gel as well. It’s easy to fall into the hype and predict a playoff appearance, but there are too many unknowns to take that leap right now.

Expect a year of growth, 7-8 wins, and a solid foundation for the franchise to take into the future.