List of Cincinnati Bengals head coaches

Last updated

The Bengals have played in Paul Brown Stadium since 2000. Cincinnati-paul-brown-stadium.jpg
The Bengals have played in Paul Brown Stadium since 2000.

This is a complete list of Cincinnati Bengals head coaches. There have been ten head coaches for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). A professional American football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio, the Bengals are a member of the North Division of the American Football Conference (AFC). The Bengals franchise was founded in 1968 as a member of the Western Division of the American Football League (AFL), [1] before merging with the NFL in 1970. [1]

Contents

The current head coach is Zac Taylor, who was hired after the 2018 season. Taylor replaced Marvin Lewis, who remains the Bengals all-time leader in seasons coached, games coached, wins, and playoff games coached. Three coaches have won a conference championship with the team: Forrest Gregg in 1981, Sam Wyche in 1988 and Taylor in 2021. [2] Gregg leads all coaches in winning percentage with .561. [3] Dick LeBeau had the lowest winning percentage, with .267. [4] Of the nine Bengals head coaches, three have been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame: Paul Brown, Forrest Gregg, and Dick LeBeau (although only Brown was inducted as a coach, the other two were inducted as players). [5] Two former players have been head coach for the Bengals: Sam Wyche and Bruce Coslet.

Key

#Number of coaches [N 1]
YrsYears coached
FirstFirst season coached
LastLast season coached
GCGames Coached
WWins
LLoses
TTies
Win%Win – Loss percentage
Elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a coach
Elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a player
*Spent entire NFL head coaching career with the Bengals

Coaches

Note: Statistics are accurate through the end of the 2023 NFL season.
#ImageNameTerm [N 2] Regular seasonPlayoffsAccomplishmentsRef.
YrsFirstLastGCWLTWin%GCWL
1 Paul Brown 1969.jpg Paul Brown 8 1968 1975 11255561.495303Inducted Pro Football Hall of Fame (1967)
2 AFC Central Championships (1970, 1973)
3 Playoff Berths
2 UPI NFL Coach of the Year Awards (1969, 1970)
[6]
2 Bill Johnson - 1950 Bowman.jpg Bill Johnson *3 1976 1978 [N 3] 3318150.545 [7]
3 Homer Rice 3 1978 [N 3] 1979 278190.296 [8]
4 Forrest Gregg 4 1980 1983 5732250.5614221 AFC Championship (1981)
1 AFC Central Championship (1981)
2 Playoff Berths
1 UPI NFL Coach of the Year Award (1981)
[9]
5 Sam Wyche 1969.jpg Sam Wyche 8 1984 1991 12161660.4805321 AFC Championship (1988)
2 AFC Central Championships (1988, 1990)
2 Playoff Berths
[10]
6 Dave Shula *5 1992 1996 [N 4] 7119520.268 [11]
7 Bruce Coslet 5 1996 [N 4] 2000 [N 5] 6021390.350 [12]
8 Dick LeBeau (cropped).jpg Dick LeBeau 3 2000 [N 5] 2002 4512330.267 [13]
9 Marvin Lewis USO.jpg Marvin Lewis *16 2003 2018 2561311223.5187074 AFC North Championships (2005, 2009, 2013, 2015)
7 Playoff Berths
1 AP NFL Coach of the Year Award (2009)
[14]
10 Zac Taylor 2019.jpg Zac Taylor *5 2019–present8237441.4577521 AFC Championship (2021)
2 AFC North Championships (2021, 2022)
2 Playoff Berths
[15]

Notes

  1. A running total of the number of coaches of the Bengals. Thus, any coach who has two or more terms as head coach is only counted once.
  2. Each year is linked to an article about that particular NFL season.
  3. 1 2 Homer Rice replaced Bill Johnson as head coach after the Bengals started 0–5. The team dipped to marks of 0–8 and 1–12 before rebounding under Rice to win the last three games.
  4. 1 2 The Dave Shula era comes to a sudden end when he is fired after a 1–6 start. Bruce Coslet, the team's offensive coordinator, would replace Shula as head coach.
  5. 1 2 After being shut out in two of their first three games, coach Bruce Coslet resigned; he was replaced by defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marvin Lewis</span> American football coach (born 1958)

Marvin Roland Lewis Jr. is an American football coach who is an assistant head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). Previously, Lewis was the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals for 16 seasons. He came to prominence as the defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens from 1996 to 2001, whose defense in 2000 set the record for the fewest points allowed in a 16-game season and led the franchise to their first Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XXXV. This success resulted in Lewis being named the Bengals' head coach, where he served from 2003 to 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Cowher</span> American football player, coach, and analyst (born 1957)

William Laird Cowher is an American sports analyst, former football player and coach. Following a six-year playing career as a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL), he served as a head coach in the NFL for 15 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He began his coaching career as an assistant under Marty Schottenheimer for the Cleveland Browns and Kansas City Chiefs, serving as the latter's defensive coordinator from 1989 to 1991. In 1992, Cowher was named head coach of the Steelers, whom he led until his retirement following the 2006 season. After retiring, he joined The NFL Today as a studio analyst.

Alvis Forrest Gregg was an American professional football player and coach. A Pro Football Hall of Fame offensive tackle for 16 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), he was a part of six NFL championships, five of them with the Green Bay Packers before closing out his tenure with the Dallas Cowboys with a win in Super Bowl VI. Gregg was later the head coach of three NFL teams, as well as two Canadian Football League (CFL) teams. He was also a college football coach for the SMU Mustangs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dick LeBeau</span> American football player and coach (born 1937)

Charles Richard LeBeau is an American former professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL) He was active at field level in the NFL for 59 consecutive seasons, 14 playing as a cornerback with the Detroit Lions and 45 as a coach. LeBeau spent the majority of his coaching career as a defensive assistant, most notably as the defensive coordinator of the Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers. Described as an "innovator" and "defensive football genius", he is considered to be one of the greatest defensive coordinators of all time.

Bruce Coslet is a former American college and professional football player and professional football coach. A tight end, he played for the University of the Pacific and in 1969 debuted with the American Football League (AFL)'s Cincinnati Bengals. He played for the Bengals in the National Football League (NFL) through 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hank Bullough</span> American football player and coach (1934–2019)

Henry Charles Bullough was an American football player and coach. He played college football at Michigan State and graduated in 1954. Bullough was a starting guard for the Spartans team that won the 1954 Rose Bowl. He was selected by the Green Bay Packers with the 53rd pick in the fifth round of the 1955 NFL Draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Brown (American football executive)</span> American football executive (born 1935)

Michael Brown is an American football executive who is the owner of the Cincinnati Bengals in the National Football League (NFL). The son of Bengals co-founder Paul Brown, he joined the Bengals upon their founding in 1968 and assumed ownership after his father's death in 1991. Before beginning his career as a football executive, he played quarterback at Dartmouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2000 Cincinnati Bengals season</span> NFL team season

The 2000 Cincinnati Bengals season was the team's 33rd year in professional football and its 31st with the National Football League. Corey Dillon would rank fifth in the NFL with 1,435 rushing yards and set a franchise record for most rushing yards in one season. On October 22, 2000, Dillon set a franchise record by rushing for 278 yards in one game. After being shut out in two of their first three games and a home loss to the Browns 24–7 in week 1, Coach Bruce Coslet resigned; he was replaced by former All-Pro Detroit Lions DB and Bengal defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau. Under LeBeau, the Bengals dropped their first three games, with an eventual long losing streak finally coming to an end on October 22 against the Denver Broncos at the new Paul Brown Stadium. The Bengals defeated the Broncos 31–21 as RB Corey Dillon set a single-game record by rushing for 278 yards. The Bengals used it as springboard to win their next game in Cleveland despite not scoring a touchdown. The Bengals offense would continue to struggle as 2nd year quarterback Akili Smith, the team's No. 1 draft pick out of Oregon, was overwhelmed by the NFL game. Corey Dillon set a team record by rushing for 1,435 yards, but with Smith's struggles as starting quarterback, the team floundered with a season-ending record of 4–12.

The 1996 Cincinnati Bengals season was the franchise's 29th in professional football and its 27th with the National Football League. The Dave Shula era came to a sudden end when he was fired after a 1–6 start, as Jeff Blake struggled with turnovers. Former Bengals tight end Bruce Coslet, the team's offensive coordinator and a former New York Jets head coach, would replace Shula as head coach. The move paid off right away as the Bengals won the first three games under Coslet. After losing two of their next three games, the Bengals closed the year with three straight wins to finish with an 8–8 record. One bright spot was that wide receiver Carl Pickens became the first member of the Bengals to have 100 receptions in a season.

The 1984 season was the Cincinnati Bengals' 15th season in the National Football League (NFL), their 17th overall, and their first under head coach Sam Wyche. The team lost their first five games, before winning eight of their final eleven games to finish the season with a .500 record.

The 1983 season was the Cincinnati Bengals' 14th season in the National Football League, their 16th overall, and their fourth and final under head coach Forrest Gregg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2002 Cincinnati Bengals season</span> NFL team season

The 2002 Cincinnati Bengals season was the franchise's 33rd season in the National Football League (NFL), the 35th overall, and the second and final full season under head coach Dick LeBeau. With a record of 2–14, however, they were the worst team in football in 2002. The team's struggles continued as they lost their first seven contests losing by an average of 19 points in each game. The Bengals would finally garner their first victory Week 8 by soundly defeating the expansion Houston Texans on the road 38–3. The winning would not last long, however, as the Bengals lost their next six games to fall to 1–13, this lethargic result was later matched by the 2019 team, which also finished at 2–14.

The 1991 Cincinnati Bengals season was the team's 24th year in professional football and its 22nd with the National Football League (NFL). Prior to the start of the season, the Bengals lost their patriarch when founder, former head coach and general manager Paul Brown died at the age of 82. His son Mike would assume control of the franchise. The Bengals would stumble out the gate losing their first eight games before defeating the Cleveland Browns 23–21 at Riverfront Stadium. The Bengals would only win two more games the rest of the season finishing with a 3–13 record.

References

General
Specific
  1. 1 2 "History – Cincinnati Bengals". Cincinnati Bengals . Archived from the original on January 6, 2014. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  2. "Cincinnati Bengals Championship History". NFL Team History.com. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  3. "Forrest Gregg Records, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro-Football-Reference.com . Sports Reference. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  4. "Dick LeBeau Records, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro-Football-Reference.com . Sports Reference. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  5. "Hall of Famers by Franchise". Pro Football Hall of Fame . Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  6. "Paul Brown Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro Football Reference. Sports Reference.
  7. "Bill Johnson Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro Football Reference. Sports Reference.
  8. "Homer Rice Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro Football Reference. Sports Reference.
  9. "Forrest Gregg Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro Football Reference. Sports Reference.
  10. "Sam Wyche Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro Football Reference. Sports Reference.
  11. "Dave Shula Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro Football Reference. Sports Reference.
  12. "Bruce Coslet Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro Football Reference. Sports Reference.
  13. "Dick LeBeau Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro Football Reference. Sports Reference.
  14. "Marvin Lewis Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro Football Reference. Sports Reference.
  15. "Zac Taylor Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks". Pro Football Reference. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved January 8, 2024.