Marvin Lewis is not happy. At least he wasn't the other day - he seemed to calm pretty quickly. But the coach reportedly lit into his Cincinnati Bengals after Saturday's preseason defeat at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs. The team didn't play particularly well, so the head ball coach had to light a fire underneath his squad. Maybe he should save some of his verbal bullets for when the games actually count, though.
The Bengals feel his wrath
Some reporters were close enough to hear the diatribe following the loss, according to UPI. It's not clear exactly what he said, but it was directed at the defense, which gave up several long drives to the Chiefs after failing to stop Kansas City on third downs; the Chiefs converted half of their third down opportunities.
The Bengals were a middling team last year, finishing 16th in the NFL in third down defense. Lewis clearly expects better of his defense, even in the preseason.
In front of the media, however, Lewis took on a different tone. He still expressed plenty of disappointment. He was much more measured in his comments, though. He claimed that the deal didn't live up to their own standards in the second half when the subs took over. He did say that things were different when the first team was on the field, which is all that should truly matter for the Bengals. Apparently, winning has to be a total team effort, even among the players who will stop seeing the field in a few weeks.
Lewis under pressure
Perhaps the pressure is beginning to get to the Cincinnati coach.
Lewis is entering the season as a lame duck coach, a rare status for any head coach in the NFL. His contract ends at the end of the season, and no extension has been worked out between the team and its long-tenured coach. There's not even a suggestion that something will be worked out at this point.
Lewis has been the head coach of the Bengals since 2003, once earning a "Coach of the Year" accolade.
During his tenure, the team has made the playoffs seven times. In each of those seven times, however, the team has lost during the AFC Wild Card Game, meaning Lewis has never won a playoff game in almost 15 years as coach. Last season's 6-9-1 record was the team's worst since 2010, although injuries definitely played a part in that. Still, if the team doesn't get over the hump soon - maybe as soon as this year - the head coach could be out of a job for the first time in a decade and a half. Pressure's on.
