Bengals May Fire Marvin Lewis By the End of the Week

There is a rumor spreading around the Cincinnati area that Marvin Lewis could be fired by the end of the week.

Sources have informed Pro Football Central that the Cincinnati Bengals are nearing toward a decision that could result in head coach Marvin Lewis being fired by the end of the week. The source also states that owner Mike Brown is also deciding upon whether to name assistant head coach Paul Alexander or defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer as the interim head coach.

Now who knows if this rumor has anything behind it. I mean, doesn't every breaking story come from Jay Glazer, Chris Mortensen and John Clayton?

Sure, the Rams fired Scott Linehan and the Raiders fired Lane Kiffin already this week. They, like the Bengals, have gotten off to really bad starts this year. However, the Rams and Raiders are heading into bye weeks which gives their new head coaches some time to make their own adjustments. The Bengals' bye isn't until Week 10.

Also, why fire a coach "at the end of the week"? If you are going to fire an NFL coach, you usually would do it on a Monday (the day after a game) or Tuesday (the players' off day). After then, the preparation for the next game is already underway.

And these are the Bengals we are talking about. Marvin Lewis is a highly paid head coach and I'd doubt that the frugal owner Mike Brown would eat the rest of his contract for this season. Especially since there doesn't seem to be any chance of Cincinnati doing anything of note this year. You may as well just let the captain sink with the ship and start anew in 2009.

Let it be known that Brown did fire David Shula during the 1996 and accepted Bruce Coslet's resignation early in the 2000 campaign.

What is interesting in this bit of news is that defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer could replace Lewis. Bengal fans already know not to expect the team to bring on an established coach. It will be an assistant somewhere and Zimmer is already here. Despite all the problems the team has had, their defense has gotten much better than in recent years.

We all pretty much figure Lewis will be gone at some point. It is just a matter of when.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

10-01-2008 @ 2:06AM

DaveBenGood said...

Lewis getting fired is just a matter of when... It's being held up now because Mikey Brown is still trying to figure out how to trade Lane Kiffin for Marvin straight up..... Lewis has lost the team, the fans and even his mailman. Paul Alexander the head coach.......um how's the o-line working out for you Paul? Zimmer would be a better short term replacement having led a good D in the past and working under Parcells in Dallas. Um Mikey swallow your pride and call coach Cowher now and BEG BEG BEG him to come to town. Give him the keys, the money and ALL the control.

10-01-2008 @ 11:56AM

Bengal Bill said...

All I know is........if we hire Cowher I am done! I have been a diehard Bengal fan for 30 years. I have been through the 2 years of good and the 28 years of bad and I still love my Bengals. I can not support a team with Cowher at the helm. He hates the Bengals. He hates Cincinnati and has said as much on many occassions. He also plays dirty and teaches his team to play dirty. After the "accidental" late and low hit on Carson's knee in 05 they went on to win the SuperBowl. I think we all know what would have happended had they not cheated. Bill Cowher....No Thanks!

10-01-2008 @ 4:12AM

Rick said...

Doesn't Cowher have a year of obligation to Pittsburgh meaning any team wanting to sign him has to work out compensation to the Steelers first? Help me out here.

10-01-2008 @ 2:50PM

Rona said...

Rick, Cowher's contract obligation to the Steelers was up last year. I can see Cincy & Cleveland going after him at the same time. They would have to give him total control though. Are their owners ready to do that?

10-01-2008 @ 12:18PM

alex said...

teach him to leave his cushy defensive coordinator job with the Skins!

10-01-2008 @ 1:34PM

skins fan said...

everyone is talking about cowher like hes some type of savior. honestly if you look at it, it took him alot of years just to get a super bowl ring and then he leaves the steelers what makes you think hes going to come back to these teams that obviously lack talent and any effort to win. So Lions, Stl, Cinci, and Oak fans please stop praising your false god "cowher", its not happening.

10-01-2008 @ 1:35PM

mrbuffalosabre said...

OUCHO STINKO!!!!!!!!!!

10-01-2008 @ 1:36PM

Monte Davis said...

OUCHO STINKO!!!

10-01-2008 @ 3:49PM

Barb said...

No, Cowher doesn't owe the Steelers any more time (he only owed them last year). Cowher in Cincy? No way. Cleveland maybe.

Tony said...

What a surprise , owners and fans finding fault and placing blame on a coach for babysiiting a bunch of primadonnas...Ocho Cinco and T.O. are so self absorbed , that they would be either in therapy rehab or Jail if not for their one ability to catch a ball...Kind of hard to get this group of convicts all on the same page not alone to play as a team...change team policy , stop looking the other way when these charactors go to jail or have brushes with the law...clean house , Im sure there are plenty of quality players that Marvin Lewis could get to lead...Get rid of the cancers , not the coach!!!

10-13-2008 @ 9:27AM

Shaun Mcintyre said...

the fact that he doesnt pretty much makes him the problem. Your right he should have done something awhile ago. TOO late now.

10-01-2008 @ 4:12PM

mikebmrvl said...

Regardless of what reasons others might claim, they are just a smokescreen for racism. The only reason why this coach would be fired is racism.

10-05-2008 @ 11:16PM

Whatwhyhow said...

You have got to be kidding me ! You think it would be racist to fire a coach with a 0-5 start who has not won one playoff game since he has been here ? Or how about a coach who's total record in the city is under .500 ? I do not care if he is freak neon green something needs to happen

10-01-2008 @ 5:42PM

bill parsons said...

the eagles should fire reid and mcnabb and ask jimi johnson the commentator to make something of whats left of the eagles and also get rid of jim johnson the deffence coach

10-02-2008 @ 6:51AM

cedrmorado said...

Mike Brown is the problem, not Marvin Lewis, the team has consistently underachieved under Mike Brown- he makes the final decisions.

10-05-2008 @ 12:50AM

highonhendrix said...

I've never understood it when teams fire their coach during a season. If the guy is doing such a horrible job and has been for a while, then why wasn't he axed in the off-season?? Example: how the hell did Norv Turner hang around DC for 7 years? And then they fire him in the middle of the season. Most of the guys who GET fired in the middle of the season are coaches whom the owners in question should never have hired in the first damn place! Example: Lane Kiffin. Seriously, besides Al Davis, who hires a COLLEGE off. coord. to run an NFL team?? I'm not even sold on teams hiring coaches who haven't been a head coach at the college level or a coordinator at the pro level. Some of those guys work out, but most don't.
And to the guy who leveled racism: you sound the kinda guy who cries that crap EVERY time a minority is fired, or not hired at all. Yeah, that kind of thing does happen, but it's not the case here. Marvin hasn't been the worst coach I've ever seen, but he's a long, long way from the best. The Bungles were 7-9 last year and 8-8 in 2006. They are 0-4 this year. This all adds up to the danger of his being fired due to the team not being very good. It is not racist to fire someone that is not doing a good job at their job.

10-21-2008 @ 4:03PM

tim mills said...

I have been a bengal fan all my life.living in so. calif. it has not been easy.they have the talent so what"s the problem? i really don not know. maybe if we keep the sheriffs bus from showing up until after the final minute it might help.that can be a real distraction i suppose.