2012 NFL season: Cincinnati Bengals face tough competition in AFC North – NFL News
The Cincinnati Bengals hope to retrain their past season’s top ten defence ranking in the National Football League (NFL), if not to improve it in the 2012 season.
Bengals do realise it will not be an easy ride given that the American Football Conference (AFC) North is one of the most competitive divisions in the league.
However, they are betting on the players like Adam Jones to have a breakout season to help them make it happen this time again.
The team stayed at ninth position in pass defence last year but suffered with injuries to a number of players at secondary position into later part of the season.
It is hoped that the same situation does not arise this season and even if does it is must be for the players like Adam to click in form timely to serve the cause of his team.
Apart from a legal case in which a court has ordered him to pay the hefty amount of $11 million in compensation to a client, the player appears set to accept the challenge.
His form will show if he comes up to the team’s expectations.
Bengals are hopeful he performs well. Otherwise, they do not stand a chance in front of their rivals, Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Browns.
The former two teams are particularly formidable units and Bengals know it is hard to challenge their standings in the league.
Bengals luckily stayed neck-to-neck with these two teams during earlier half of the last regular season, but later could not stand the extra competitiveness and pressure of the second half.
They ended up third in the AFC North and out of a sheer amount of luck won the last wildcard chance to help themselves through to the playoffs.
At the end, they could not overcome the challenge posed by the second round’s newbies Houston Texans. It was due to the below par form of Jones and the players at the secondary.
The team hopes it is not the case this year as they look to improve further.
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