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Cincinnati Bengals history
Cincinnati Bengals company history timeline
The team's first season was in 1968.
The next year, a group headed by Brown was awarded an American Football League franchise that would begin play in 1968.
In addition to Anderson and Esiason, the Bengals have been able to boast of many outstanding players since their first game in 1968.
In 1970, the Bengals also began playing in a new stadium, Riverfront Stadium, on the Ohio River in downtown Cincinnati.
Cincinnati was a member of the AFL for just two seasons before the league merged with the NFL in 1970.
In 1970, they captured the AFC Central division title and thus became the first expansion team to win a championship of any kind in just three years.
In 1971, the Bengals selected Ken Anderson, a quarterback from little-known Augustana College, in the third round of the draft.
In 1972 the Bengals turned their offense over to second-year quarterback Ken Anderson (from tiny Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois), who would go on to lead the team for over a decade and set numerous franchise passing records.
Following the playoffs in 1975, Brown retired from coaching.
After two successful seasons, Johnson experienced a dismal start to his third campaign, not winning any of the first five games in the 1978 season.
In 1980, Forrest Gregg became head coach.
One of Brown’s most important personnel moves came in 1980 when he drafted tackle Anthony Muñoz, who is considered one of the greatest offensive linemen in football history; Muñoz anchored the Bengals’ line for 13 seasons.
Images from the 1981 AFC Championship between the Cincinnati Bengals and San Diego Chargers, a game affectionately known as the "Freezer Bowl."The Freezer Bowl is recalled as the coldest game in NFL history.
The Bengals missed the playoffs for the next five seasons but won big in 1981, the year the Bengals unveiled their new uniforms with tiger-striped helmets, jerseys and pants.
None, however, was more outstanding than tackle Anthony Muñoz, a first-round draft pick in 1981.
Cincinnati returned to the playoffs after the strike-shortened 1982 season but lost in their opening-round postseason game.
In 1984 Sam Wyche became the Bengals’ head coach, and a year later Anderson ceded Cincinnati’s starting quarterback role to Boomer Esiason.
Celebrating the 30th reunion of the 1988 Super Bowl team with former players and coaches.
In 1988 an Esiason-led Bengals team tied the Buffalo Bills for the best record in the AFC by going 12–4.
Dave Shula replaced Sam Wyche in 1992.
Bruce Coslet replaced Shula during the 1996 season, but with the exception of his first season, Coslet never won more than seven games (less than one-half of them) in a single season.
In 2000 the Bengals moved into a football-only venue, Paul Brown Stadium.
Marvin Lewis became head coach in 2003.
Under Lewis's guidance, the Bengals have experienced more success, returning to the NFL playoffs in 2005.
Cincinnati then began a stretch of losing seasons that reached a nadir in 2019, when the team tied a franchise-worst record by finishing the season 2–14.
That poor performance gave the team the top pick in the 2020 NFL draft, which they used to select quarterback Joe Burrow.
Behind a healthy Burrow and a sensational performance by rookie wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase (Burrow’s former college teammate), the Bengals won 10 games and a division title in 2021.
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Cincinnati Bengals competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit Lions | 1929 | $30.7M | 403 | 6 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 1960 | $26.1M | 567 | 22 |
| Oakland Raiders | 1960 | $660,000 | 2 | - |
| Atlanta Falcons | 1966 | $22.7M | 465 | 1 |
| Indianapolis Colts | 1953 | $34.0M | 463 | 27 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 1961 | $26.5M | 497 | - |
| San Francisco 49ers | 1946 | $510.0M | 3,000 | - |
| Cleveland Browns | 1946 | $17.5M | 100 | 2 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 1976 | $12.0M | 200 | - |
| Carolina Panthers | 1993 | $29.8M | 682 | 5 |
Cincinnati Bengals history FAQs
Zippia gives an in-depth look into the details of Cincinnati Bengals, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in order to inform job seekers about Cincinnati Bengals. The employee data is based on information from people who have self-reported their past or current employments at Cincinnati Bengals. The data on this page is also based on data sources collected from public and open data sources on the Internet and other locations, as well as proprietary data we licensed from other companies. Sources of data may include, but are not limited to, the BLS, company filings, estimates based on those filings, H1B filings, and other public and private datasets. While we have made attempts to ensure that the information displayed are correct, Zippia is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of this information. None of the information on this page has been provided or approved by Cincinnati Bengals. The data presented on this page does not represent the view of Cincinnati Bengals and its employees or that of Zippia.
Cincinnati Bengals may also be known as or be related to Cincinnati Bengals and Cincinnati Bengals, Inc.