4-EYED TEAM PREVIEW: CINCINNATI BENGALS (2021)
Today we are finishing our 4-EYED TEAM PREVIEW SERIES by covering the Cincinnati Bengals of the AFC North!
In 2020, the Bengals finished with a record of 4-11-1 and by doing so ended up with the fifth pick overall in the 2021 NFL Draft. With that draft pick, rather than addressing a crumbling offensive line, they reunited rookie wide receiver, Ja’Marr Chase, with his college quarterback Joe Burrow. While the drafting of Chase, on paper, gave the Bengals one of the top wide receiving trios in the NFL, the real concern for this passing attack revolves around Burrow’s recovery from his season-ending injury in Week 11. While the early training camp reports haven’t provided “stellar” news regarding Burrow’s recovery, Bengals and fantasy fans ARE expected to see his preseason game debut in Week 4 of the preseason. Needless to say, the health of the players on this offense is paramount to its success.
So with that said, who are the players from the Bengals offense that can help you win a fantasy championship in 2021?
Find out below in our 2021 Bengals 4-EYED Team Preview!
Quarterback
Joe Burrow
When Joe Burrow was injured in Week 11, he was the QB16 in fantasy. With the drafting of Chase, Burrow’s current ADP has him at the QB13 which may be a little high if he starts slow out of the gate. Burrow had 37 rushing attempts through 10 games last year and this injury leaves a question mark as to what his rushing output will be starting the season. If he doesn’t run as much, he is going to have to supplement those potential fantasy points through the air using his receivers.
In the 10 games he played, Burrow ranked 10th in passing yards but was sacked the third most times. This is where the concern from the offensive line comes from because we don’t know how well Burrow is going to be able to take a hit with his recovery. I am hopeful with Burrow this season, but on a points per game basis in the games he played he had 17.9 points per game. This was lower than Gardner Minshew (19.4), Carson Wentz (18.9), and Jared Goff (18.1) who were all considered really bad quarterbacks last year. All of this is to say, don’t overdraft Burrow just because the Bengals took the first wide receiver in the draft and everyone is excited about second-year receiver Tee Higgins.
Running Back
Joe Mixon
Mixon was only able to play the first six weeks of the season dealing with a foot injury the rest of the way. While he was active, he averaged 14.8 fantasy points per game and was the RB9 in that span. Mixon’s current ADP has him going in drafts as the RB13. I like this area for Mixon because he isn’t going to have much competition for carries in this backfield. While he isn’t known for being a receiving back, he did have 21 receptions last season. If Burrow struggles, Mixon could see a higher workload, and the only thing that could cap his fantasy production would be poor game script because the defense gives up too many points.
Wide Receivers
Tee Higgins
In fantasy football, wide receivers are typically given a season to adjust to a new quarterback so we often see rookie wideouts take a step forward in year two. This is the expectation for Higgins as 2020’s WR30 is going as the WR27. While that isn’t much of an increase, that number is down recently and many people have him in their top-20 of rankings. Higgins was the WR27 when Burrow was active last season and he figures to vie for the WR1 tag in this Bengals offense.
Higgins played in all 16 games in his rookie season and had 67 receptions on 100 targets. He had 908 yards receiving and six touchdowns and they even came up with some end around where he ran the ball five times for an additional 28 yards. He can provide flexibility as a wideout and he averaged 10.9 fantasy points per game with Joe Burrow under center.
Ja’Marr Chase
Chase played two seasons at LSU and opted out of the 2020 collegiate season so we haven’t seen him take the field since he won a national championship with Burrow and the Tigers. As a freshman, Chase played in 10 games and had 23 receptions for 313 yards and three touchdowns. He broke out his sophomore year and played in 14 games where he had 84 receptions, 1,780 yards, and 20 receiving touchdowns. He was an instrumental part of Joe Burrow’s Heisman campaign and Burrow was on record saying he wanted the Bengals to use their fifth overall pick to bring in Chase, and they did.
Chase has an ADP right behind Higgins as TE30 so expectations are for the rookie to shake off the rust quickly and hit the ground running with fantasy production in your lineups.
Tyler Boyd
I wrote an article about the value that Tyler Boyd brings to this Bengals offense before they drafted Chase. Even though they brought in the rookie wideout, I think that Boyd is primed for a huge season. For starters, as the slot receiver, if Burrow does have trouble with his injury and he can’t throw the ball deep, Boyd will benefit.
Burrow’s average depth of target for his career so far is 8.8 yards and Boyd’s was 8.8 yards in 2020. Boyd is the receiver that will be in the passing wheelhouse for Burrow and he is being drafted two rounds later than his teammates. There is immense value here.
Tight End?
Drew Sample
The Bengals technically have a tight end, but Sample finished as the TE33 last year so just leave him undrafted. I don’t even think he is worth streaming yet.