Happy Anniversary Marvin Lewis !

[oldschooler]

3 years ago today Mike Brown made the best decision he has

ever made and hired Marvin Lewis.

In that 3 short years, Marvin Lewis has taken the Bengals from

the doormat to (near) the Penthouse of the NFL.

I would just like to express how thankful I am and commemorate

this occasion with a few articles from that day.

Hire of Lewis step in right direction for Bengals

By Paul Daugherty,

The Cincinnati Enquirer

What an opportunity. What a solid-gold chance of a lifetime for Marvin Lewis and the Cincinnati Bengals. Lewis couldn't do more for Cincinnati if he were elected mayor. If Lewis can overcome the Bengals' dark cloud of Mike Brown-ness and win some games — if he can win some games while also being engaging and popular — what fresh air that will be for our beaten-down town. (Related story: Bengals hire Lewis as head coach)

The hiring of Lewis at least portends change. A change in the team's fortunes, a change in the town's national perceptions. The team perceived by every player in the league as antiquated and doddering — "The Flintstones of the NFL" as one former Bengal put it Tuesday night — will have to be seen in a brighter light.

Hiring a black football coach in a city known, fairly or not, for Mapplethorpe, Marge and (protest) marchers can only help the healing. At least it makes it harder to maintain the hurtful perceptions.

Lewis' hiring will make a difference to players. We don't like to talk about race, in sports or anywhere else. But black players will tell you when their coach also is black they feel an added responsibility to help that coach succeed. It isn't that the best players don't play hard for whoever is coaching. It just becomes more a matter of pride, and that is fine. The Bengals even might sign a decent free agent.

Lewis' hiring also shows a shift in the balance of the Bengals front office power. By most accounts, Lewis was Katie and Troy Blackburn's guy. The difference between Brown and his daughter and son-in-law is, Mike knows what he knows and Katie and Troy know what they don't know. It's a crucial distinction and badly needed if the Bengals are to turn around.

Katie Blackburn has seen what her father has been through. She'd have to be crazy to want to endure it herself. Hiring Lewis could be the first step in ensuring she won't have to.

This even might push some of the mud off Mike's legacy if he's interested. He can be seen as — dare we say it? — enlightened. The NFL is going to go rockets-red-glare with this. It will pose Lewis' hiring as a sign of progress, and for once the Bengals will reap good publicity.

Had Lewis been here instead of Mobile, Ala., this is what I'd have asked him: How do you change the culture of losing that is so deeply ingrained here? Did Mike Brown tell you he wants to win or compete? How did he assure you he wants to win? How will things change?

Without change in how the operation runs, hiring Lewis is half a loaf. Even the best coaches are only as good as the players they coach. The Bengals need better players, and that means more scouts, smarter scouts and a willingness occasionally to play the big-money free agent game.

You wonder why Lewis struck out in job quests at Buffalo, Carolina and Tampa Bay. You're also curious why his two most recent employers, the Baltimore Ravens and the Washington Redskins, weren't especially sorry to see him leave. Lewis' work with both defenses was exemplary.

Part of it might be the coaches he worked for. Brian Billick and Steve Spurrier aren't much for sharing credit. Part of it also might be Lewis' own confidence in his way of doing things.

Now let's hope he gets to do things his way. Marvin Lewis was the best man available for this job. The fact he's black would make his success here that much more important.

Bengals go with defensive mastermind Lewis

By Mark Curnutte,

The Cincinnati Enquirer

POINT CLEAR, Ala. — Marvin Lewis became the NFL's third African-American head coach Tuesday night, taking the reins of the league's worst team, the Cincinnati Bengals, who haven't had a winning record in 12 years.

Lewis, the architect of one of the NFL's greatest defenses, the Baltimore Ravens' Super Bowl XXXV champions, promised to bring a blue-collar work ethic and discipline to a struggling team and organization. "This is about hard work," said Lewis, the son of a western Pennsylvania steel worker. "Places don't lose. People win and lose. I have a plan." (Related column: Lewis' hire a step in the right direction for Cincinnati)

Lewis replaces one of his mentors, former Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau, who was fired after the Bengals recorded a franchise-worst 2-14 record this season.

Lewis is the eighth black head coach in NFL history and joins Indianapolis' Tony Dungy and the New York Jets' Herman Edwards as the only blacks among the league's 32 teams.

Lewis declined to reveal the length and value of his contract. It's reported to be five years with incentive clauses.

Lewis' hiring is the first of an African-American coach since the NFL instituted a new minority hiring initiative Dec. 20. Attorneys Johnnie L. Cochran Jr. and Cyrus Mehri, who put pressure on the league, praised the Bengals' hiring of Lewis in a statement. "Today's decision by the Cincinnati Bengals to hire Marvin Lewis opens a new chapter for the NFL as the first hire which fully carries out the new hiring process. This is a great day for everyone."

The hiring marked a philosophical shift for the Bengals, who had not brought in a total outsider as head coach since 1980.

"It's a big step in the right direction for the franchise, as well as for the Brown family," Pro Bowl fullback Lorenzo Neal said. "It's good for morale."

The Marvin Lewis file

Age: 44. Coaching experience: 22 years, including linebackers at Pittsburgh (1992-96); defensive coordinator for Baltimore (1996-2001) and Washington ('02).

Head coaching experience: None.

Claim to fame: The architect of perhaps the greatest defense in NFL history, the Super Bowl XXXV champion Baltimore Ravens. His defense, the catalyst for the Ravens' title run, set new standards for excellence, setting the record for the fewest points allowed in a 16-game regular season (165) and for fewest rushing yards allowed (1,970). It also recorded four shutouts.

Job that got away: Thought to be in line for head coaching job in Tampa Bay last year, but it never materialized. Became NFL's top-paid assistant with Redskins.

He knows linebackers: Earned all-Big Sky Conference honors (1978-80) as a linebacker at Idaho State.

Lewis will bring a fresh perspective to a locker room that wallowed in misery as the losses mounted. Lewis, the team's first black head coach, will be moving to a city still trying to heal from race riots in 2001.

"In the 35 years of the franchise, there haven't been a lot of blacks in there," offensive tackle Willie Anderson said. "For one of the first blacks in the front office to be the head coach, that's a gigantic move. Cincinnati is a place where you wouldn't think that would happen."

After failing to get a head coaching job after the 2000 or 2001 seasons, Lewis became defensive coordinator of the Washington Redskins, but was eager for the chance to become an NFL head coach.

Owner Mike Brown and other front-office personnel were in Mobile, Ala., scouting the Senior Bowl when they chose Lewis as the team's ninth head coach. The announcement came a day after Steelers offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey had his second interview for the job.

Quarterback Jon Kitna, who called for change beginning at the top of the organization during the season, was encouraged that Lewis will evidently get to hire most of his staff.

"It sounds to me like they're going to let him have a little bit of say in what goes on," Kitna said. "That's a very positive thing."

The last time the Bengals went entirely outside the organization for a head coach was 1980, when they hired Forrest Gregg. He led the team to its first Super Bowl a season later, but butted heads with the Brown family over control of the roster and left after the 1983 season.

During their dismal dozen years, the Bengals have had four head coaches with links to the organization: Sam Wyche, Dave Shula, Bruce Coslet and LeBeau. None has been able to produce as much as one winning record.

The question is whether Lewis, who has been an NFL assistant for 11 seasons, can overcome the front office's shortcomings, which practically ensure failure.

The Bengals are 55-137 under Brown, who refuses to bring in a general manager, give his head coaches final say over the roster or upgrade the NFL's smallest scouting staff.

By hiring Lewis instead of someone on staff, Brown acknowledged a need to change direction and win back fans. The Bengals' last three home games last season drew the three smallest crowds in Paul Brown Stadium history.

Brown chose a head coach who will be much different from LeBeau, who also was a former defensive coordinator. LeBeau, 65, was personable and easygoing, and some players took advantage of him.

Lewis is much younger (44) and more fiery. His hiring was welcomed by team leaders, who are hoping for a significant change in the front office as well.

Despite the myriad drawbacks, Lewis took the job because he was so determined to become a head coach after being repeatedly passed over.

His work in the Ravens' Super Bowl season made him a widely mentioned candidate, but the team's long playoff run left him unable to interview for jobs. The NFL now allows assistants with playoff teams to interview for head coaching jobs.

Lewis was considered for Buffalo after the Super Bowl, but got passed over for Gregg Williams. After the 2001 season, he was a candidate for Carolina's opening, which went to John Fox.

Lewis then emerged as Tampa Bay's prime candidate after Bill Parcells decided against coming out of retirement. General manager Rich McKay recommended Lewis, but the sons of Bucs owner Malcolm Glazer decided against hiring him.

He went to Washington, where he had a lot of autonomy under offense-minded head coach Steve Spurrier. The Redskins also made him one of the highest paid assistants in the league.

If Lewis can save the Bengals, the sky is the limit

By Len Pasquarelli

ESPN.com

Last month, when Marvin Lewis was considering an offer to coach Michigan State, most of his closest confidants urged him to accept the position and use it as a springboard to a long-sought NFL head coaching job.

Sensing that the springboard might actually produce more of a belly-flop, and not the perfectly executed swan dive he so desperately wanted in his first head coaching job, Lewis politely declined the opportunity.

Which begs these queries:

Why did he accept the Bengals' offer? Especially since the thankless job of coaching Cincinnati in recent seasons has been the equivalent of climbing to the top of the 10-meter Olympic platform and throwing one's self into a diving tank emptied of all its water?

Is it Pride? Confidence? Self-esteem? Is it the belief, deluded or not, that he will be the man who succeeds where others have failed? That he is good enough to reverse the fortunes of a hapless Bengals team whose roster is more talented than the franchise's victory total the past dozen seasons might indicate?

"Winning is the only thing in which I am interested," Lewis acknowledged Tuesday evening, shortly after taking on such a daunting challenge. "I feel like I know this team pretty well. I coached in their division for a lot of years. I know there are players there. I think I can win. If I didn't I would not have taken the job."

Of course, others who preceded him went to Cincinnati with similar convictions. But the road to the glitzy, and relatively still new, Paul Brown Stadium is lined with the remains of well-intentioned coaches. There is a strong suspicion in the league, one not meant to diminish the tutorial skills of Marvin Lewis, that his name will be chiseled into a Bengals tombstone in three or four seasons.

That may well be the case, since Lewis won't have considerably more clout than his predecessors, and since owner Mike Brown and his family continue to hold front office sway. But as they like to boast in New York, if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.

And if Lewis can transform the Bengals from unloved losers into a merely respectable team, he could run for mayor and win in a landslide, frankly. Or, write his ticket to any other NFL precinct he chose.

This is Lewis's fourth shot at an NFL head coach brass ring. He previously interviewed in Buffalo, Carolina and Tampa Bay. Had it not been for the infamous veto that Bucs ownership issued to a deal brokered by franchise president Rich McKay last year, Lewis would have been in Tampa Bay and maybe playing for a shot at the Super Bowl.

Circumstances dictated otherwise, Lewis rolled with the punches and now he has a head coach's position. What he does with it will be a true test of his coaching acumen.

Lewis takes great umbrage at the suggestion that he has always loved the courtship process, but never the marriage ceremony, that he enjoyed being the subject of so many coaching searches yet never pushed hard for any of the positions. This time, he pushed hard, selling himself in a very enthusiastic manner to the Brown family.

But while he was the pusher, Lewis was also the pushee, because there were outside forces nudging him along. Ever since activists Johnnie Cochran and Cyrus Mehri threatened litigation if the NFL didn't change its hiring process to include the top minority candidates, the league has been championing the cause of black coaches.

However, color is not the reason the Bengals hired Lewis in a close call over Steelers offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey. But it would be naïve to suggest that color won't be an element in how Lewis is evaluated in the job. It would also be Pollyannish to believe Lewis wasn't under extreme pressure to accept the job if offered.

In a chat with ESPN.com after rejecting the Michigan State post, Lewis allowed that he had to succeed in his first NFL head coaching exposure. League owners can rationalize all they want, but if Lewis is an instant hit, some of the color barriers will tumble. If he flops, well, this alleged age of enlightenment will have been dealt a blow.

"It's like with black quarterbacks," said Gene Upshaw, NFL Players Association executive director. "Now that there are so many good ones, everybody wants one, right?"

In a sense, Lewis becomes the latest standard-bearer, aligned right next to Tony Dungy and Herm Edwards. Problem is, he inherits a sub-standard club in the Bengals, who haven't been to the playoffs since 1990 and have lost 10 or more games for five consecutive seasons.

There is some talent in players such as tailback Corey Dillon, offensive tackle Willie Anderson, linebackers Takeo Spikes and Brian Simmons, defensive end Justin Smith and wide receiver Chad Johnson. But the Bengals are only as good as their quarterback and they haven't really had a legitimate player there in years.

Chances are good Lewis will retain offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski, meaning the design on that side of the ball won't be subjected to yet another overhaul, yet another dramatic upheaval for younger players. But there is still a valid reason the Bengals have been branded the "Bungles" and all the enthusiasm in the world can't expunge that laughable handle.

In taking on such a challenge, Lewis indeed has climbed to the top of the 10-meter platform, and stands poised at the edge. Here's hoping no one below has pulled the plug on him already.

[ArmyBengal]

Submit this as one of the longest initial posts I've seen here... Also submit this as one of the best decisions EVER made by this organization. Marvin Lewis has brought this team back to respectability and made them a contender. Here's to hoping ML doesn't go ANYWHERE anytime in the near future !!!

WHODEY !!!

[NJ29]

In Marvin we trust....

Who Dey!

[oldschooler]

Submit this as one of the longest initial posts I've seen here...

Yeah I was trying to make each article a seperate post.

But this board has anti post whore control option turned on.

So it just added them all to the inital post.

[ArmyBengal]

Great post though !!!

WHODEY !!!

[LB51]

Nice thread! We have come a long way as an organization and a team. We have Marvin to thank for that!

[oldschooler]

Of course, others who preceded him went to Cincinnati with similar convictions. But the road to the glitzy, and relatively still new, Paul Brown Stadium is lined with the remains of well-intentioned coaches. There is a strong suspicion in the league, one not meant to diminish the tutorial skills of Marvin Lewis, that his name will be chiseled into a Bengals tombstone in three or four seasons.

He sure did prove those "suspicions" wrong didn`t he ?!!!!

After this past week, it is great to be able to look back

at where we were. And realize that things were alot worse not so long ago.

[Stripes]

In Marvin we trust indeed. We finally made the playoffs folks. That "have not made the playoffs in x years" tag is GONE forever.

Things are looking up.

[Ox]