For the first time in the Zac Taylor era, the Cincinnati Bengals finished the preseason with a winning record, in fact, undefeated at 3-0. Going into this preseason, the Bengals amassed a 4-14-1 record in the preseason under Taylor. Let’s face it, we all know the preseason means jack squat in terms of record. It does mean a lot with how the team plays and usually is an indicator on how the depth of your team looks. There has been a lot of optimism going into this season for the Bengals. In what started as a down offseason, coming off of another brutal season and missing the playoffs for the third straight season.

The criticism of the Bengals front office was certainly justified but they came through in vastly improving this roster. With the help of some pressure from franchise quarterback Joe Burrow, Bengals Director of Player Personnel and defacto General Manager, Duke Tobin revamped the defense and helped stabilize the offensive line. The words of Burrow carry a lot of weight within this organization. When Joe speaks, people listen and the pressure he put on the front office was enough to get them to bring in the pieces to help catapult this organization back into Super Bowl contention.

For teams to be successful, they have to be deep in almost every position. Throughout this training camp and preseason, that has been very evident.

Here are some positives and negatives from this preseason for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Positives

Defense. The defense has been the major problem for this organization over the last few years. This training camp has been the defensive show. The newly renovated defensive line has been a nightmare for the offense all during camp. So far this preseason, the defensive line has been able to apply pressure on the opposing quarterback and company. From Dexter Lawrence to Landon Robinson, the defense is much different than we have seen in years past. The depth on the defensive line can be utilized in some ways to help bolster other spots on the roster. Names like Kris Jenkins have been tossed around as trade pieces that could help bring in a possible swing tackle on the offensive line. Without a rookie like Landon Robinson stepping up and playing well, the Bengals would not be able to take advantage of their depth to improve other positions on the team.

Wide Receivers. The depth at wide receiver is fantastic. There are many names that have stepped up and have made a name for themself during this training camp. The wide receiver play so far during this preseason and training camp is going to make things very difficult for the Bengals coaches and front office to make final roster decisions. The emergence of Dohnte Meyers and Colbie Young give the Bengals much needed options should Jamar or Tee miss any time. The trust they have gained with Joe Burrow only makes things better for the offense moving forward.

Evan McPherson. Money Mac struggled last year. There is no debating that. The issues seemed to stem from the snapper/holder operation. With new pieces in the crucial areas, the whole thing seemed to be off. That has not been the case this year. McPherson has been absolute nails this preseason, giving off vibes from his rookie season. The ability to utilize a weapon like McPherson only enhances the Bengals chances of coming away with points on each possession.

Negatives

Orlando Brown Jr. Orlando Brown Jr. has not had the best camp and his limited preseason did not look pretty. The expectations for Brown are always going to be high, despite the fact he is an aging tackle. If the expectations weren’t as high as they are, then this wouldn’t be as big of a deal. Knowing what Brown was a few years back, the worry was there after the first preseason game. It might be a little bit of a stretch to really be worried about Brown at this point and time.

Offensive Line Depth. This would be another stretch to really be upset at but the depth on the offensive line was a negative. This comes from the fact that nobody stepped up to fully capture the swing tackle role. The starting five on the offensive line is locked in, with only a handful of players feeling safe as a backup. The release of Cody Ford earlier this week was a bit of a surprise but with nobody really taking a hold of the swing tackle role, the Bengals will most likely have to find that player via trade or on the waiver wire. There will be some players that are out there after being cut but are they better than any one of the guys that are currently in camp, that is the big question.

For the first time in years, the Bengals preseason was damn near flawless. Overall, there weren’t many things to be upset with. The massive amount of positives compared to the small and nitpicky negatives, things are looking very positive in Cincinnati heading into the season.

With cut down day coming up on Sunday, look for the ISC 53 man projection for the Bengals roster coming up.

Chris Asbrock and Impact Sports Cincinnati can be followed on Twitter  Follow @iamchrisasbrock and Follow @ISCincy