Can the Bengals Get Back to the Playoffs?

Back in 2001, Indianapolis Colts head coach Jim Mora went on a one of the most famous press conference tirades in the history of sports. After a loss to the San Francisco 49ers that dropped the Colts to 4-6 on the season, a reporter asked Mora about the Colts chances of making the playoffs. It was a simple question and I think you've seen Mora's response many times before.

"Ah -- Playoffs? Don't talk about playoffs?! You kidding me?! Playoffs?! I just hope we can win a game!"

Fast forward to 2012 and Bengals fans have the same question for head coach Marvin Lewis. Can the Cincinnati Bengals return to the playoffs for a second straight season? Marvin won't go on a tirade like Mora and probably wouldn't give us a clear answer either, but I think Marvin's answer should be yes and here's why.

Andy Dalton and A.J. Green will be trying to do something that no Bengals
player has done in over 30 years, have back-to-back winning seasons.
(US Presswire)

All the pieces are in place for this team to succeed and build on last year's 9-7 record. The coaching staff, an owner (who was arguably the Executive of the Year in the NFL last season) finally committed to winning, and talented players on both sides of the ball.

On offense, sophomores Andy Dalton and A.J. Green will be looking to do even more after their Pro Bowl rookie seasons. Newly acquired RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis will take over the reins at running back and rookie WR Mohamed Sanu could have a big impact in the passing game.

The defense is once again led by fiery defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer and he will be salivating with the talented veterans and young players he has to work with this season. First round pick CB Dre Kirkpatrick (Alabama) will get a chance to start at corner along with Leon Hall, who is coming off an Achilles injury that ended his season early. The line has more talent on it than the past five years combined with Carlos Dunlap, Domata Peko, Michael Johnson, Geno Atkins, Robert Geathers, Jamaal Anderson, and two rookies in Devon Still (Penn St.) and Brandon Thompson (Clemson).

That doesn't even include linebackers Rey Maualuga, Thomas Howard and Manny Lawson, and defensive backs Reggie Nelson, Adam Jones, Terence Newman, Nate Clements, and Taylor Mays. The Bengals may not have a Clay Matthews, Jared Allen or Darrelle Revis on defense, but they are going to have 11-20 quality guys that Mike Zimmer and Marvin Lewis can count on to make a big play when the game is on the line. Not many NFL defenses can say that. 

The Bengals get to kickoff Monday Night Football on ESPN this year against the Ravens in Baltimore, which gives Mike Brown and Marvin Lewis a great chance to show the country just how good of a football team they have put together. After looking over the roster, here is who I see starting on September 10th against the Ravens, along with some other players who will play a key role in the Bengals success this season.

Offense

QB: Andy Dalton

RB: BenJarvus Green-Ellis (aka The Law Firm)

FB: Chris Pressley

WR: A.J. Green, Brandon Tate

TE: Jermaine Gresham

T: Andrew Whitworth, Andre Smith

G: Clint Boling, *Kevin Zeitler

C: Jeff Faine (if Kyle Cook can't go due to a foot injury)

Kevin Zeitler and Dre Kirkpatrick will both be key contributors for the
Bengals in their rookie seasons.
(Frank Victores/US Presswire)

Other players to keep an eye on:

WR: Andrew Hawkins, Armon Binns, *Mohamed Sanu

TE: *Orson Charles, Donald Lee

RB: Bernard Scott, Brian Leonard

Defense

DE: Carlos Dunlap, Michael Johnson

DT: Geno Atkins, Domata Peko

LB: Thomas Howard, Rey Maualuga, Manny Lawson

CB: Leon Hall, Nate Clements

S: Reggie Nelson, Taylor Mays

Other key contributors on defense:

DE: Jamaal Anderson, Robert Geathers

DT: *Devon Still, *Brandon Thompson

LB: *Vontaze Burfict, Dan Skuta

DB: *Dre Kirkpatrick, Adam Jones, Terence Newman, Jason Allen, *George Iloka

Special Teams

K: Mike Nugent

P: Kevin Huber

Returner: Brandon Tate

*Rookie

Prediction

The schedule is brutal and certainly won't make things very easy for Andy Dalton and Co. The Bengals were 9-7 last season with all seven of those losses coming against playoff teams. In 2012, the Bengals will face the Steelers and Ravens twice in the division which is no easy task in itself. Baltimore is going to have a great team again and I think they will ultimately win the division. The Steelers have gotten younger and they are going to be good once again, so the road to the division crown is not going to be an easy on in the AFC North.

On top of that, the Bengals will also go up against the Giants, Eagles, Cowboys, Broncos and Chargers just to name a few. That doesn't even include a trip to Arrowhead to play the Chiefs, Carson Palmer returning to Cincinnati with the Raiders and a visit to the nation's capital to take on RG3 and the Redskins. A daunting task to say the least.

After going over the schedule though, I look for the Bengals to finish at best, 10-6. They probably have a better chance of going 9-7, but I'm going to stick to what I said earlier and say that this team will improve on what they were able to accomplish last season. 10-6 should be good enough to clinch a Wild Card spot, so for the first time since 1981-1982, the Cincinnati Bengals will have consecutive playoff appearances. "Holy Crap!"

It's going to be a great season to be a Bengals fan and I expect a lot of very close and competitive ballgames from the orange and black this season. Times have changed in Cincinnati and although it probably won't happen this year, the Bengals are on the right track to a Super Bowl title in the not so distant future. When was the last time you could say that in Cincinnati without getting laughed at? Who-Dey!

Week 1 picks to come on Wednesday when the season officially gets underway, so stay tuned.

(Photo Courtesy Bengals.com)