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Given what the Cincinnati Bengals accomplished last year, there are going to be a lot of teams compared to them in the coming months.
It’s not often a team like the Bengals does what they just did — just ask Colin Cowherd — but that won’t stop the comparisons from flying.
The first notable one? Former Bengals standout Cris Collinsworth says the New York Jets could be the next Bengals.
“I just feel like if there’s a team out there that can make a jump this year and surprise everybody … the Jets, maybe they’re that team this year,” Collinsworth said on “The Cris Collinsworth Podcast” last week.
And to the credit of the Jets, wilder things in the NFL have probably happened. They should have a force of a defense in 2022 and boast a second-year quarterback in Zac Wilson who should be on the upswing, in part due to some strong weapons on the supporting cast.
Still, the 2021 Bengals don’t run to the Super Bowl without an extremely underappreciated defense, some solid injury luck and…Joe Burrow. Wilson’s coming off a debut in which he only completed 55.6 percent of his passes, never mind the fact most guys simply aren’t Burrow.
The fact this is even a discussion for the Bengals and their fans is a byproduct of the major turnaround and a fun place to be, at least.
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