Corey Dillon says Bengals need fresh start without Marvin Lewis

Former Bengals great Corey Dillon is letting his opinions on Marvin Lewis be known.

The Bengals' second round pick in the 1997 NFL Draft joined TMZ this week to discuss his thoughts on the Bengals and their lackluster season.

“Lot of great talent, but it's just not adding up. I don't know what the problem is. They should be in the equation every year, but they're not. If you've got talent, and it's not getting processed into the playoffs and winning playoff games, you gotta start looking at the staff. And seeing what’s going on there. Cause you got the talent, it ain’t like you don’t have the players,” Dillon said.

Dillon perfectly captures the most troubling part about the Bengals being 3-7-1: they have the talent necessary to win games! Andy Dalton, A.J. Green, Tyler Eifert, Geno Atkins, Vontaze Burfict, Carlos Dunlap, a two-headed rushing attack. The Bengals have the majority of the pieces in place to make a playoff run. But, something is holding them back and Dillon, who spent seven years with the Bengals, the final year being Marvin Lewis’ first year in Cincinnati, believes it’s time to evaluate the coaching staff.

“You've got to start evaluating the coaching method,” Dillon said. “I'm not hating on Marvin. Hey, he’s been there for like 14 years or something like that.”

Dillon also took a slight jab at Lewis and his Bengals, though, what he said is certainly true.

“Come on man, I won more playoff games in three years with the Patriots than he’s won,” Dillon said. “So you do the math on that.”

TMZ asked Dillon if it’s a problem that Marvin is a “nice guy”.

“I respect a players’ coach. That’s a great thing,” he answered. “But if it’s not helping your players get the job done on the field, maybe it is a problem. I played under him. I have my own situation with him. I told him some stuff, man-to-man, and at the end of the season, we made some business decisions and I’ll leave it at that. I don’t know how he interacts with everyone else. I’m just going off the record and what the record shows and the record shows, hey, it’s been 14 years, haven’t won a playoff game.”

Dillon subtly hinted at having some beef with Lewis. But, everything he’s saying is what many Bengals fans believe. The former Bengals running back finished off his talk with TMZ saying it’s time for change in Cincinnati.

“I think the Bengals are ready for a fresh start,” Dillon said. “Bring someone in with a different concept and hopefully a different method will get them through.”

We can only hope...