The Cincinnati Bengals and the Pittsburgh Steelers have one of the most violent rivalries in the NFL.
Breaking down the AFC North: Baltimore Ravens
Look no further than the AFC Playoff game in the 2016 Playoffs where penalties decided the outcome of the game. Vicious hits and Injuries to Ben Roethlisberger, Le’Veon Bell, and Antonio Brown occurred in that season’s matchups. Injuries to the killer Bs and fights galore forced league officials to intervene and warn players about physical play.
This past season, the rivalry was just as competitive even if it wasn’t as chippy.
The Bengals had a good draft and sport a talented roster despite not making the playoffs this past season. Their offense has a seasoned quarterback in Andy Dalton and weapons to boot. The running game is going to be improved by the addition of Joe Mixon who will excel on all three downs. His off the field behavior is a moral issue, but his on-the-field play is something to be admired.
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The Bengals also have a star receiver in AJ Green who will make their passing game competitive. The weakness I see in the Bengals offense is their offensive line. It will be interesting to see if that translates into problems for the Bengals playmakers.
The Bengals have a talented defense as well. They have a decent secondary that looks to be around the league average. Up front is where the Bengals have a lot of talent. Carlos Dunlap is one of the better edge defenders in the game and on the other side they added Carl Lawson and Jordan Willis who were both in the first round conversation pre-draft.
In the middle of their defensive line, the Bengals still have Geno Atkins although he is probably not the player he once was. Linebacker is a position of strength with Vontaze Burfict, Vincent Rey, and Kevin Minter. Overall, the Bengals should be better on defense.
There is some talk about whether Marvin Lewis is the right coach for Cincinnati as the team has not had success in the playoffs. Not reaching the playoffs last year, along with some questionable character issues on the team, have fueled that conversation.
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The Steelers have beat the Bengals their last three times playing each other, but every game was a battle. I see the Bengals being competitive in the AFC North and it being a tough game both visits for the Steelers.