Most dubious records and distinctions in Bengals history

Every NFL team has some great accolades to their name to go along with some other embarrassing marks. The Cincinnati Bengals are no exception, but the team does seem to have a bit more of the latter than the former.

Here are some of the most dubious records, marks and embarrassing facets in the team’s history.

8-31 and 5-19: Whether or not you buy into particular narratives, the Cincinnati Bengals simply aren’t good on the biggest stages. The first record noted (8-31) is Marvin Lewis’ overall primetime record from the past 15 seasons, including the postseason.

The latter (5-19) is the record of Andy Dalton in the same limelight. While both the coach and quarterback are known as overall winners, their respective failures in these big games are major blemishes on their resumes. Luckily, the Bengals have just one game on this stage this season—Week 2 versus Baltimore on Thursday Night Football.

35-62: This is the Bengals’ record against the Pittsburgh Steelers, including the postseason, in the team’s history. Quite frequently, the division, be it the old AFC Central or the current AFC North, runs through The Steel City, so the Bengals need to start flipping the series more into their favor.

14: This is the paltry amount of postseason appearances the Bengals have had in their 50-year history. Essentially, the team has made the playoffs at a 28% clip.

Comparatively speaking, the Steelers have made the playoffs 61 times in their illustrious 86-year history with a 36-25 record. Yuck.

0-2: This is the team’s record in the Super Bowl. Both were heartbreaking losses (sense a theme?) to the San Francisco 49ers in the 1980s at the hands of former Cincinnati assistant, Bill Walsh.

0-7: This is the postseason record of Lewis in his 15 previous seasons as Bengals head coach. Though he has done wonders with a club that was downright awful in the preceding era, they still have not found a way to win some of the most important games in franchise history.

More maddening is the fact that Lewis has used four different quarterbacks in these contests (Carson Palmer, Jon Kitna, Andy Dalton and AJ McCarron) and still can’t get it done. Obviously, respective injuries to Palmer and Dalton in two immensely-important Wild Card clashes against Pittsburgh have to be taken into account.

3: The number of seasons the Bengals have had a 1,000-yard rusher in the past seven years. Cedric Benson cracked the mark in 2011, BenJarvus Green-Ellis did the same the following year, while Jeremy Hill also eclipsed the mark in his exciting rookie campaign of 2014.

The number three also represents the amount of seasons the Bengals have gone without a 1,000-yard campaign. Yes, they’ve split carries with Giovani Bernard and Joe Mixon in recent years, but there still hasn’t been “the guy” to lean on in Dalton’s tenure, for the most part.

3: There’s just something about this number. Aside from the aforementioned rushing statistics, it also represents the amount of first seasons essentially wasted by their past three first round draft picks.

We kind of knew Cedric Ogbuehi’s rookie year would be a wash and it was even a bit of an added bonus that he suited up as an extra lineman toward the end of 2015. William Jackson hurt his shoulder in 2016 training camp, while a myriad of issues plagued 2017 No. 9 overall pick, John Ross, last year.

Oddly enough, Cincinnati rolled the dice on another injured player with their first pick this year in center Billy Price, but he seems to be ready to go for training camp. Fingers crossed.

71:2: This ratio is something that has to make Bengals fans cringe. The first number is indicative of the combined missed games of linebacker Vontaze Burfict (29) and tight end Tyler Eifert (42) in their respective careers.

Even though they are both considered as a couple of the best Bengals players on their side of the ball, the second number points to the paltry amount of Pro Bowls they have both been nominated to. Eifert and Burfict have been to one Pro Bowl apiece, largely because of the missed time—oh, and Eifert hurt his ankle the only time he made the All-Star squad.

27: This number represents the amount of years that have passed since the Bengals last won a playoff game. They last defeated the Houston Oilers back in the 1990 postseason (technically in January of 1991), and have been futile in their attempts since.

1: The number of jerseys retired by the Bengals and the Brown family. The franchise’s first-ever pick, center Bob Johnson, and his No. 54 hold this distinction.

Still, for both honoring past greats and in fan-endearing purposes, there are many others that should be retired and maybe even enshrined in a Ring of Honor. Mike Brown doesn’t seem interested in that idea, though.

1: The amount of true Bengals players in the NFL Hall of Fame. Sure, players like Charlie Joiner and Terrell Owens played for the Bengals, but it was essentially a blip on their career radar. Anthony Munoz remains the only player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame as a Cincinnati Bengals player. Guys like Andrew Whitworth, Geno Atkins, A.J. Green, Chad Johnson, Ken Anderson and Willie Anderson all have shots to varying degrees, but we’ll see if they make it to Canton.