CINCINNATI -- Unable to win, barely able to even score, the
Cincinnati Bengals found themselves with a new coach Monday with
their season all of three games old.
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Monday, Sept. 25
Teams rarely lose a coach in the middle of the season, but the Bengals were going backward under Bruce Coslet. The Bengals have some talent, and I was expecting some wins and better play. But they have been shut out twice in a row and there have been confrontations between Coslet and players on the sidelines.
Unfortunately for Coslet and the team, there seemed to be no cohesion on the team. It's a shame for Coslet and for Cincinnati, but this move was almost an inevitability. The big question was whether or not it would happen during the season.
There is no more three- or five-year plan. Cincinnati's plan has gone on for too many years. The Bengals have a new stadium, and their No. 1 draft pick, Peter Warrick, signed and was in camp on time. Along with drafting Warrick, they re-signed offensive tackle Willie Anderson and running back Corey Dillon. They have a nice, young defense. Although it looked like things would turn around this season, the Bengals are just going the wrong way.
The Bengals need to right the ship because the ship is sinking quickly, and it's one that shouldn't be sinking. They need a spark somewhere. If it's a change of attitude or a change of coach to Dick LeBeau, so be it. I think everybody saw the writing on the wall, and the writing was in ink, not pencil.
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Bruce Coslet unexpectedly quit as coach of the NFL's worst team
of the past decade and was replaced by defensive coordinator Dick
LeBeau in the first NFL coaching change this season.
The resignation came a day after the Bengals lost their third
game in a row and second straight without scoring a point. They
have been outscored 74-7 this season and haven't made the playoffs
since 1990, the league's longest current streak.
"He's a good teacher ... he's good with players," Bengals
owner and president Mike Brown said of LeBeau. "I think he can
step in now and get our situation back on course as quickly as
anybody could."
LeBeau, a former star cornerback for the Detroit Lions, becomes
an NFL coach for the first time at 63. He has spent 28 years as an
assistant on other coaches' staffs.
"There will be some changes," LeBeau said at a news
conference. "I think we have to take a look at everything."
"We think we can win on a regular basis with this football
team," he added. "We think we have a good, young, talented
football team."
Coslet coached the New York Jets from 1990-93 and became coach
of the Bengals in 1996. Under Coslet, the Bengals were 7-9 in 1997,
3-13 in 1998 and 4-12 in 1999.
LeBeau said he was stunned by Coslet's decision.
"I tried to talk him out of it," he said. "He was not to be
swayed."
Brown, too, was surprised.
"It was hard for me because he's a good man, a friend and a
good coach," Brown said. "That was his call and he made it. It's
behind us now."
Brown questions whether the Bengals gave Coslet the support he
needed.
"I think we all wonder," he said. "If we had better answers,
maybe we would have had success."
Brown intends to continue to run the team as general manager
rather than hire someone else.
"I have no plans to make that change as I stand here today,"
he said.
The Bengals' 37-0 loss on Sunday in Baltimore was further
evidence of their futility on offense. They had lost 13-0 the week
before in Jacksonville after a 24-7 loss at home on Sept. 10.
The Bengals are under increased pressure to win because
taxpayers paid for the $453 million Paul Brown Stadium in which the
Bengals started play this season.
Coslet, a former Bengals tight end, had done two tours as the
Bengals' offensive coordinator before becoming head coach in 1996
when Dave Shula was fired with the team 1-6. Coslet brought LeBeau
back to the Bengals in 1997 for a second term as defensive
coordinator.
|  | | General manager Mike Brown, left, said he was surprised by Bruce Coslet's decision. |
LeBeau plans to have offensive coordinator Ken Anderson, a
former Bengals quarterback, call the offensive plays. LeBeau plans
to run the defense with help from linebackers coach Mark Duffner.
Defensive back Cory Hall said the players respect LeBeau.
"Look at the defense we run. He put that package together,"
Hall said. "I trust him 100 percent."
The Bengals set an NFL record by losing 107 games in the 1990s,
108 if the Jan. 2 loss in Jacksonville is included.
Cincinnati's total of seven points in the first three games is
the lowest for a three-game stretch since the 1978 team scored
three points in three weeks during a 4-12 season. Sunday's loss was
the 28th in 35 games under Coslet.
"That was about as thorough a beating as you'll see," Brown
said after watching the Bengals rush for just four yards in the
Baltimore game.
The Bengals dipped into the free-agent market during the
off-season, signing safety Darryl Williams and defensive linemen Tom
Barndt and Vaughn Booker. The acquisitions have yet to produce any
wins.
Former Bengals wide receiver Carl Pickens criticized the team
for retaining Coslet as the 1999 season ended. The Bengals released
Pickens, their all-time leading receiver, who now plays for
Tennessee.
LeBeau has worked on the coaching staffs of the Philadelphia
Eagles and Green Bay Packers. He was defensive coordinator under
Sam Wyche when Cincinnati advanced to the Super Bowl following the
1988 season.
LeBeau played at Ohio State before starring for the Lions from
1959-72. He set a record for cornerbacks by playing 171
consecutive games. When he retired, his 62 interceptions ranked
third in NFL history.
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ALSO SEE
Ravens dominate Bengals with 37-0 rout
VIDEO
  Owner Mike Brown names Dick LeBeau as the new head coach of the Bengals. RealVideo: 28.8  Chris Mortensen has analysis on the resignation of Bruce Coslet as the Bengals' head coach. wav: 361 kRealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Tom Jackson is not surprised by Bruce Coslet's resignation. wav: 190 kRealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Dick LeBeau talks about being named head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals. wav: 119 kRealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Bengals President Mike Brown comments on Bruce Coslet's resignation as head coach. wav: 125 kRealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 |
