1973 Cincinnati Bengals season

Last updated

1973 Cincinnati Bengals season
Cincinnati Bengals wordmark (1971-1996).png
Head coach Paul Brown
Home field Riverfront Stadium
Results
Record10–4
Division place1st AFC Central
Playoff finishLost Divisional Playoffs
(at Dolphins) 16–34

The 1973 Cincinnati Bengals season was the franchise's 4th season in the National Football League, and the 6th overall.

Contents

The Bengals split their first eight games, then swept their last six to win their second AFC Central Division title. Cincinnati qualified for the postseason but lost in the Divisional Playoffs to the Super Bowl winner, the Miami Dolphins 34–16.

RB Essex Johnson became the first Bengal to achieve 100+ yards rushing and receiving in the same game. He rushed for 121 yards on 21 carries and got 116 yards on two receptions on Sep 30, 1973 at San Diego. Perhaps one of the best marks of the season for the Bengals was giving the eventual NFC Champion Minnesota Vikings their most lopsided loss of the season 27–0.

Offseason

NFL Draft

1973 Cincinnati Bengals draft
RoundPickPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
115 Isaac Curtis  *  Wide receiver San Diego State
243 Al Chandler   Tight end Oklahoma
368 Tim George  Wide receiver Carson–Newman
5121Bob McCall  Running back Arizona
6146Bob Jones  Defensive back Virginia Union
7171 Bob Maddox   Defensive end Frostburg State
8199Joe Wilson Running back Holy Cross
9224John Dampeer  Guard Notre Dame
10249 Lenvil Elliott  Running back Northeast Missouri State
11277William Montgomery Defensive back Morehouse
12302 Boobie Clark  Running back Bethune–Cookman
13327Brooks West  Defensive tackle UTEP
14355 Hurles Scales  Defensive back North Texas State
15380Ted McNulty  Quarterback Indiana
16405Harry Unger Running back Auburn
17433Wayne Estabrook Quarterback Whittier
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[1]

Personnel

Staff

1973 Cincinnati Bengals staff

Front office

  • President – John Sawyer
  • Director of Player Personnel – Pete Brown

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches



Roster

1973 Cincinnati Bengals roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad



Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

WeekDateOpponentResultRecordVenueAttendance
1September 16at Denver Broncos L 10–280–1 Mile High Stadium 49,059
2September 23 Houston Oilers W 24–101–1Riverfront Stadium51,823
3September 30at San Diego Chargers W 20–132–1 San Diego Stadium 46,733
4October 7at Cleveland Browns L 10–172–2 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 70,805
5October 14 Pittsburgh Steelers W 19–73–2Riverfront Stadium55,819
6October 21 Kansas City Chiefs W 14–64–2Riverfront Stadium56,397
7October 28at Pittsburgh Steelers L 13–204–3 Three Rivers Stadium 45,761
8November 4at Dallas Cowboys L 10–384–4 Texas Stadium 54,944
9November 11at Buffalo Bills W 16–135–4 Rich Stadium 76,927
10November 18 New York Jets W 20–146–4Riverfront Stadium55,745
11November 25 St. Louis Cardinals W 42–247–4Riverfront Stadium50,918
12December 2 Minnesota Vikings W 27–08–4Riverfront Stadium57,859
13December 9 Cleveland Browns W 34–179–4Riverfront Stadium58,266
14December 16at Houston Oilers W 27–2410–4 Astrodome 21,955
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 2

1234Total
Oilers703010
• Bengals01001424
Scoring summary
Q1HOU Gresham 103 yard kickoff return (Butler kick)HOU 7–0
Q2CIN Johnson 11 yard run (Muhlmann kick)Tie 7–7
Q2CINMuhlmann 27 yard field goalCIN 10–7
Q3HOUButler 38 yard field goalTie 10–10
Q4CIN Clark 3 yard run (Muhlmann kick)CIN 17–10
Q4CIN Trumpy 35 yard pass from Anderson (Muhlmann kick)CIN 24–10

[2]

Week 5 vs Steelers

Pittsburgh Steelers (4–0) at Cincinnati Bengals (2–2)
Period1234Total
Steelers00077
Bengals637319

at Riverfront Stadium • Cincinnati, Ohio

Game information

Week 7 at Steelers

Cincinnati Bengals (4–2) at Pittsburgh Steelers (5–1)
Period1234Total
Bengals060713
Steelers3710020

at Three Rivers Stadium • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Game information

Standings

AFC Central
WLTPCTDIVCONFPFPASTK
Cincinnati Bengals 1040.7144–28–3286231W6
Pittsburgh Steelers 1040.7144–27–4347210W2
Cleveland Browns 752.5714–26–3–2234255L2
Houston Oilers 1130.0710–61–10199447L6

Team stats

1973 Cincinnati Bengals Team Stats
TEAM STATSBengalsOpponents
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS252219
Rushing124109
Passing10897
Penalty2013
TOTAL NET YARDS45123705
Avg Per Game322.3264.6
Total Plays871840
Avg. Per Play5.24.4
NET YARDS RUSHING22361807
Avg. Per Game159.7129.1
Total Rushes515459
NET YARDS PASSING22761898
Avg. Per Game162.6135.6
Sacked Yards Lost24–16343–342
Gross Yards24392240
Att. Completions332–180338–182
Completion Pct.54.253.8
Intercepted1218
PUNTS-AVERAGE68–4177–41.7
PENALTIES-YARDS83–79978–710
FUMBLES-BALL LOST25–1431–16
TOUCHDOWNS3227
Rushing1315
Passing189
Returns13
Score by Periods1234Tot
Bengals391007968286
Opponents50615862231

Team leaders

Postseason

RoundDateOpponentResultRecordVenueAttendance
DivisionalDecember 23at Miami Dolphins L 16–340–1 Miami Orange Bowl 74,651

Awards and records

Pro Bowl Selections

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References

  1. ↑ "1973 Cincinnati Bengals draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
  2. ↑ Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Jun-22.
  3. ↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, ISBN   0-7611-2480-2, p. 452
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