Bengals take it in the chops in preseason rankings, but nevermind that

The Bengals have positioned themselves to dismiss what pessimists might think, believing they can make the playoffs after a one-year drought, so Friday’s prediction in the Last Word On Pro Football that they’re just the 19th-best team in the NFL entering the preseason may strike them as bunk.

By  treasuring the additions of rookies John Ross, Joe Mixon, Jordan Willis and Josh Malone via the draft and figuring that All-Pro wide receiver A.J. Green will stay healthy all season they've positioned themselves to feel good.

LWPF? Not so much. As you can see here, they're obsessed with the Browns' head coach, who was the Bengals' previous offensive coordinator.

In their opinion, “People have started to speculate that the offense can’t run like it used to without Hue Jackson calling the plays, and in a competitive AFC North, it’ll be interesting to see how the Bengals hold up.”

The Bengals fared similarly in LWPF's rankings of the top players within the AFC North on defense and special teams, landing tackle Geno Atkins, end Carlos Dunlap and cornerback Adam Jones on the preseason all-division team.

Jones will miss the season opener against the Ravens after being suspended Friday by the NFL

Making the grade offensively were wide receiver A.J. Green and tight Tyler Eifert -- who both struggled with injuries last season.

Painfully, former Bengal Kevin Zeitler, who joined the Browns as a free agent, was tabbed the top guard in the division.

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