Like most fans, I was
elated at the news that Marvin Lewis and the Bengals were parting ways. It was
move that fans across Bengals Nation had been calling for since the 2015
playoff meltdown and the emotion behind grew ever season thereafter. This led
us to December 31st, 2018 and the end of the rein of Marvin Lewis in
Cincinnati.
While it was a move that needed to happen and was far
overdue, Marvin’s impact on the franchise can’t be understated. The team he
inherited had become the laughing stock of the NFL and suffered one of the
worst ten-year spans in the league’s history from 1992-2002. In his first
season with the club he brought them to the .500 mark after going 2-14 the
previous season. Two seasons later he led the Bengals to an AFC North Title,
the first of four in his career.
Marv had a great deal of success in as a head coach. His
131-122-3 record over 16 seasons is nothing to scoff at and earned him the most
wins by a coach in franchise history. The previous 16 years the team went
98-173. Those years include 1988 Super Bowl run and two other playoff
appearances. Considering this Marv did a pretty good job of raising the bar.
I remember the excitement of the 2005 division
championship. For a young fan with no recollection of the 1980’s it was the
first taste of glory and I relished it. Over the next decade the Bengals
remained a contender and left their fan base wanting more. The problem was more
never came. The fans were forced to endure heartbreak after heartbreak. Out of
the seven playoff appearances during the Lewis era the fans watched the orange
and black fall to the Jets, Chargers, Colts, Texans twice, and worst of all two
devastating defeats by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Honestly, Marv
suffered a lot of bad breaks. His bad breaks began when Carson Palmer went down
in the wildcard game back in January of 2006. From there they just kept coming.
Whether it was lost draft picks like David Pollack and Chris Henry, untimely
injuries such as 2014 and 2015 playoff appearances, or flat out one-sided
officiating like the 2015 playoff disaster, Marvin Lewis took more than his
fair share of bad breaks.
In the end what does it all mean? The pessimist would
argue that it was all a waste. Cincinnati has the same number of post season
wins as they did 16 years ago. This would be narrow minded thinking and a total
disservice to all the player and coaches who worked hard over that span. As a
fanbase we owe Marv a lot. He pulled us from the dark ages and gave us four AFC
North titles and seven playoff appearances.
To slant quote the movie The Dark Knight, “you either leave the hero or hang around long
enough to become the villain.” This is exactly what happened to Marv. For many
years he was the answer to the Bengals’ prayers and I can honestly say that I
really wish he could have retired as a Super Bowl champion. As Marv moves away
from his time in Cincinnati I would like to say thank you. Thank you for the
memories, thank you for making us proud to be Bengals fans, thank you for
making us a contender, and thank you for making us demand more.
