How many games will the Bengals win this year?
I say another 8-8 or 9-7 season. My official prediction will be 9-7. I'd love to be more optimistic, but after watching the defense so far, and knowing the actual performance of the defense last year with little in the way of better players or coaching, I can't believe this is a playoff team.
The window for this great offense won't be open forever. It's definitely better now than it was for the decade pre-Marvin, but in a way it's more painful because they're so close yet they're not doing anything substantive to fix the defense. A little bit of pass rush, and this team could win the Super Bowl. But they do nothing. So while it's better than the 90s and early 21st century, it's the same in some regards and more tortuous in the process.