NFL Power Rankings 2019: Patriots get Josh Gordon, Chargers lose Derwin James

31. Cincinnati Bengals (31)

Could this finally be the year in which the Cincinnati Bengals return to the level of being a legitimate contender in the AFC?

Now that Marvin Lewis is finally out of the picture, the Bengals hope to see Zac Taylor bring new life to this offense, and give the rest of the teams a run for their money in the AFC North.

While the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers are usually the top contenders in the division, the Cleveland Browns are expected to take a major leap as well in 2019, meaning Cincinnati is going to have quite the work cut out for them.

One individual player certainly isn’t going to determine what happens with the Bengals this upcoming season, but there’s no question that Andy Dalton needs to come up big, or his future could be in jeopardy.

Despite seeing limited action when taking on the Washington Redskins, it was somewhat concerning to see Dalton record an interception.

Plus, with A.J. Green expected to miss a couple of games, this will put even more pressure on Dalton to start the season to make sure this offense can live up to the hype, or Cincinnati could be looking at a fourth year in a row watching the playoffs from home.