Bad Prediction

I wouldn't put much stock into what is being said about the Bengals. Most new coaches have a tough first season including Bill Belicheck when he first took over for the Pats. Jimmy Johnson went 1-15 in his first year with the Cowboys. Granted both of these coaches had far more experience than Zac Taylor does when they became a head coach, but that's sorta what the NFL (at least under Coach Sean McVey) is trending towards. We'll just have to wait and see how things unfold and whether or not the Bengals are 'trending' in the right direction. Regardless, the hiring of Zac Taylor is a positive whether he's successful or not just for the fact that the Bengals have actually demonstrated that they're capable of hiring a new coach from outside the organization. Albeit ten years too late.

Personally, it may be in the Bengals best interest if they tank and are able to draft either QB Trevor Lawrence or QB Tua Tagovailoa. I'm not for sure if Trevor is coming out, but Tua almost certainly is and he would be a HUGE addition to the roster and fan favorite if he finds success which I think he will. All I know is that Tua has a great arm and instincts and looks like the real deal although there have been a few times where he hasn't lived up to his billing. If Tua is given time to become acclimated with the speed of the NFL and he's put into a good system along with being protected from pass rushers, he could surprise in year one. Overall, Tua has shown well above average talent and smarts to be considered a franchise QB. Tua could be the QB that turns this franchise around. If the Bengals believe he is, they should make a trade in order to draft him. If he pans out, he's worth far more than two first rounders and a third rounder.

IMO, Tua has the the ability to come in and completely transform this team. As far as Mike Brown is concerned, considering how reluctant he is with trading up, I think there's more of a chance that he would allow such a move now that he has a new head coach and wants to keep his new coach happy.

The Bengals are also tens of millions of dollars under the salary cap (as they always are), so they have more than enough capital to forfeit draft picks and make up for these lost picks by signing a few young and very talented free agents AND STILL be tens of millions of dollars under the salary cap. In a nutshell, Mike Brown is still extremely stingy and puts making as much money as possible way ahead of building a Super Bowl winner and he'll be this way until the day he dies. 

As far as all these preseason rankings go whether it be power rankings or whatever, I don't put any stock into them nor do I read those type of articles. A total waste of time IMO. 

So what should the Bengals do? They should go out and try to win as many games this season as possible and not even consider tanking. After the season, they should trade up and draft the best available QB such as Tua, Trevor Lawrence or Justin Herbert and it doesn't matter how many draft picks it takes. It's a trade that must be made. Besides, the Bengals already have a very talented roster. It's not like they're completely building from scratch. After drafting say Tua, they should look at their needs, but prioritize BPA (best player available). Adding at least one, but more preferably two, high quality free agents could put this team over the top in a year or two. They just have to be smart about it and Mike Brown has got to stop being so greedy. Hopefully Katie and the rest of the Brown clan can steer him in the right direction.