How Marvin Lewis bungled his message to the players

[Hoofhearted]

(12-21-2017, 12:12 AM)jowczarski Wrote: @DepthChart – that was my story
https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/nfl/bengals/2017/12/17/marvin-lewis-surprises-bengals-opting-not-return-2018/959164001/

The Bengals were always open to talking to Marvin after the season about his future. That has been the case for 15 years, that was going to be the case on Jan. 1, 2018. But it did not mean that he was indeed “coming back.” There was a reason the organization did not extend him in the offseason. They wanted to see this team reach its potential. Suffice to say, it has not.

And yes, I think it’s fair to say he wasn’t ready for that to come out when it did and wasn’t prepared for all that followed.

@WeezyBengal & @Nately120 (The contract technically goes beyond Dec. 31, just an FYI.) It’s not the message that surprised everyone, but the timing and the fact he didn’t tell his staff or his players before the world found out. That’s the problem everyone in the building had.

As for the just owning part – that’s what everyone wants as well. But, it didn’t happen.

@sonofstat – You are 100 percent right about Green in this instance.

@TheLeonardLeap & @bengalfan74 I get what you’re saying, considering the no playoff success. But actually, Lewis’ tenure is widely considered a success. Believe it or not, most NFL general managers and coaches I talk to don’t count Super Bowl appearances as success. They know how hard that is, and that the Patriots are an unbelievable outlier. So yes, Lewis is considered very successful in league circles. But I get the fan perspective, for sure.

@Goalpost – you’re right about that process after the 2010 season. Very weird and that press conference has lived in infamy. The one thing they learned from that is this – in all the years after, they always announced his extensions via press release. In this particular moment, I think if Lewis would have owned it – you may have seen a smoother transition out re: public comments. But since he denied and denied … really not much the team could say about it.

I am baffled by the bolded statement. Winning your conference is not a success? How is that?