(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
The Bengals ownership somehow found it in their good graces to keep Marvin Lewis employed. I don't know why or how they could just let their team sink like the Titanic after hitting the iceberg (of course referring to Lewis) and do nothing to help.
Even with the stupidity of the front office and coaching staff, however, the Bengals will not be the last place team this season. A healthy Carson Palmer and a refocused Chad Johnson could result in some shootout victories for the Bengals.
Laveraneus Coles is not one to be written off this season, either. Most of the attention from the defensive backs is diverted towards Johnson. This can give Coles those extra one-one-one matchups that he couldn't get in the Big Apple.
If the Bengals can get decent production out of former first round selection Cedric Benson, their offense will be very tough to stop this season. The offense may be able to at least make the Bengals competitive this season, in spite of iceberg Lewis.
The defense, though maybe just as much of a force as a pack of poodles, have a young linebacker corps forming. Keith Rivers, David Pollack, and Rey Maualuga could be the first building blocks this team has seen since the "defensive-minded" Marvin Lewis took over.
Still, the Bengals are a laughable franchise, even with a third-place finish.
4. Cleveland Browns
This team just doesn't seem to have any daylight around the corner for them.
Kellen Winslow is gone, leaving Edwards to fend for himself against secondaries that will lock on to his whereabouts on the field.
Neither Quinn nor Anderson really stand a chance with the blind side of the line being less than stellar.
As far as the running game, Jamal Lewis is not only aging, but will have a tough time running through eight or nine guys in the box since no defense will respect the Browns' aerial attack.
Don't even get me started on the defense that was ranked 26th in total yards allowed last season.
Other than the usual array of problems the Browns always seem to have (pee wee talent), their new head coach brings his own issues. Eric Mangini has bigger things to worry about than the Patriots getting a sneak peek at practice.
Mangini was just recently fired from the Jets after only three seasons, where he failed to make the playoffs while having a future Hall of Fame QB on the roster.
In Mangini's three seasons as Jets head coach, he had only one playoff appearance, where they were knocked out in the first round.
Another measure of the lack of success he has had is the fact that, as a defensive mind, he led the Jets to an 18th overall ranking in points allowed last season.
Another red flag for Mangini is the fact that Marvin Lewis wasn't even fired!
Why teams love to hire recently fired coaches who leave a pile of rubble for their previous employers will always be a concept that I will never understand.
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