Why do you feel optimistic about this Bengals team relative to prior years?

[CageTheBengal]

I was excited about last years team until the injuries piled up. Considering we never really saw them play at their max potential that's enough reason for me to be optimistic. Injuries happen to every team and the "next man up" concept is great but starts losing traction when you lose so many key players.

Eifert returns
Burfict (hopefully) returns
Marvin Jones returns
Andre Smith returns
AJ Green returns
Geno could return to prime form
Leon could return to prime form

Just having the team healthy in general is enough to make me optimistic. Last year was a train wreck that started with Eifert hurting his elbow. Also younger guys obtained more experience last year that can help with their development. No reason why younger guys like Iloka, Kirkpatrick, Lamur, Hill and Bodine can't improve from last year with more notches on their belt. Bringing in Michael Johnson and a physically and mentally tough Geno leaves the door open for our d-line to return to form.