Ask Jim Owczarski

[jowczarski]

Thanks for the patience y'all - as you can imagine it's been a bit crazy here the last few days:

I just read your article on the Enquirer titled, "Steelers week does not feel like a playoff." Interesting you would write that, one of the frequent debates regarding the Marvin Lewis coached 0-6 Bengals in the playoffs is he does not elevate the environment, tempo, and motivation for the playoffs leading to his teams coming out flat. Could this be the reason you feel this way that led you to write that article? How would you compare the atmosphere to that of the Green Bay playoff teams you were around in the same capacity?

Thanks for reading! Honestly, you never knew those were playoff games either. They kept it very similar to the regular season. It sounds goofy, but keeping things similar is what most teams prefer. In some ways I thought it was a compliment to the team in that they weren’t so wound up on the “playoff” factor – but instead focused like a regular season divisional game, which they had been pretty successful at.

Second question:

Marvin Lewis's record in the playoffs (0-6) and Pittsburgh Steelers (2-12 @ home, 8-19 overall) are abysmal results that would lead to heavy scrutiny by the organization, media, and fans in most NFL markets. Many coaches are terminated for much less, yet Marvin Lewis is still in Cincinnati and I never hear local reporters question him regarding these results and hold him to the fire.

Such as, "Given your record coach Lewis, what will be different this time? Why should anyone believe in your team? Is this why you are an underdog at home as a higher seed?"

Are local reporters threatened with lack of access by the Bengals organization if they ask "negative" questions?

I feel these are fair and relevant questions for local reporters to be true to their community. Cincinnati fans funded the stadium through local taxes, they buy tickets, and merchandise even through the many years of failures. Us, fans, do not have access to ask these questions directly, but reporters do and I am extremely curious as to why they do not?

I only have this one year on the beat – and I’m pretty sure we asked Marvin, Hue and Paul about “what can you do different” before/during the season – and in the run up to Saturday’s game. As for the ‘underdog’ question – that’s a Vegas betting line. The players might know it, but coaches won’t care – a higher seed and a home game = being the favorite in their minds.

We are not afraid of lack of access due to negative questions. Let’s be real – this team was 12-4 and before Andy got hurt they were 10-2 and en route to a No. 1 seed. When he was healthy it was a top 5 offense, the defense was top 10 after Burfit’s return. Not much to complain about or ask “negative” questions outside of some week to week questions.

All coaches do that, but that doesn't stop media in all other markets from putting the coach on the hot seat.

There are two reasons for that: First, the media are the voice of the community and it is incumbent upon them to raise legitimate concerns from the community.

Second, it is not about how the coach answers the questions, it is about making public the failures which should be known, addressed, and create pressure surrounding those failures.

The reporters in Cincinnati do not do that in their capacity as Cincinnati Bengals media, even with the existence of ample relevant evidence, and I wan't to know why?

… Real reporters know these type questions are meaningless, the only ones who ask them are just putting on a show for the fans that love to hate.  


Yes, to us being the voice of the community – to a point. We do have the access you do not (yet it’s funny when the public doesn’t care or gets mad at us for complaining about players not talking – that means they’re not talking to you, either. But that’s a whole other thing) and we ask questions that we feel the fans want answer to.

Two – it is about how the coach answers questions, or if he does at all. Honestly, what good would it do anyone for a 3-minute preamble to a question stating facts everyone knows that only serve to anger the coach and lead to not only a non-answer, but either the end  of the press conference or, in some circumstances, the coach not speaking to that reporter or that outlet.

You mention ample evidence. Everyone knows the evidence. Everyone knows the facts. Honestly there’s no point in stating it over and over.

These are the games we have to play. Honestly, the head coach has every opportunity to say something – it’s not on us for him to actually answer the question.
Sorry, but, 'hey Marvin, you suck in the playoffs, why?' Isn’t going to get a better answer than trying to ask the same thing but far more tactfully. It only serves the previous point of those types of questions are only for grandstanding purposes.


has there been any update on Reggie Nelson?

Not yet, officially. Unfortunately we’ll only know if he pulls out of, or plays in, the Pro Bowl. Marvin Lewis expects he can play.

Jim, has Vontaze Burfict made any sort of public statement, in regard to 'the hit"?

Not yet. He's waiting for the appeal process to work itself out. But we'll have something when he does. Frankly, that hit was just a football play. I see it every week. Look - we all know if Tez wanted to land a dome shot on Antonio Brown with malice, it would not have looked like that. I honestly believe he didn't mean to hit him in the head in that instance. But he did. Happens. Happens a lot. The Jones penalty was the backbreaker. As for the suspension - probably deserved. He's paying for past sins on that one.

but also Bernard, Kirkpatrick, Peko, McCarron, and Dalton. Other unreported injuries as well?

Gio, nothing official – other than he entered standard NFL protocol. But without a game or anything, no info will come out. Dre left on crutches and a full left leg brace. He told Dehner that he should be good to go for 2016. McCarron’s fine. Peko was in a walking boot on his right foot so I assume he’ll be good to go, too.

Brandon Thompson tore his right ACL. Lamur left on crutches and a full leg brace on his left leg but he wouldn’t say what his injury is. Dennard should be good for 2016.

Regarding coaching changes, what is the summary of who's been contacted and interviewed?

For such a high profile job, there is very little no public chatter on this. It’s fascinating. We’re working very hard on this, but it’s very, very quiet.

At what point do you think the front office will want to go in a different direction, or do you believe Marvin will only leave when Marvin wants to?

I think these things will change when it’s time to move on from this core and go through the next "generation," or just an outright implosion like 2-14 next year with no injuries. I do feel it’s Marvin’s job until he wants to go (unless something crazy like that happens).


How many successful NFL teams with SB rings would've kept Marvin on as HC with 7 playoff losses and 0 wins?

That’s the funny thing. No one fits that category. He is very, very rarified air with 52 regular seasons wins and five straight playoff appearances. We’re talking Belichick, McCarthy. John Fox was fired in Denver after a run of consecutive playoff appearances but John Elway clearly wanted him gone – there is no such animosity with Marvin’s superiors. So, all the “successful” teams have won a ring or gotten to the SB. The Bengals are the one team that keeps winning but not winning the big one… Maybe the Colts are in that spot now? But they’ve won a game or two…

Or is just getting to the playoffs  success enough because Cincinnati is a small market team?

Nothing to do with market, IMO. Paul and I have been doing national radio since Sunday talking about this game. NFL is global. But getting to the playoffs is clearly just enough because nothing has changed. That said – you can’t win the SB unless you get to the playoffs, so getting that bite at the apple as often as possible is not a bad thing. That’s why everyone wants to hire Marvin’s assistants. That’s why teams made a run at Duke Tobin. NFL teams want the Bengals success. That’s a fact.


How likely is his playoff performance going to impact his status as head coach? For the Bengals, not very much. If this were any other team, then probably enough for removal. Marty Schottenhiemer took the Chiefs to the playoffs 7 times in his 10 years there with 3 playoff wins and 7 losses [a notably better record than Marvin Lewis] and was fired. He took the Browns to the playoffs 4 out of 5 years with 2 wins and 4 losses and was fired after a playoff loss. He was at SD for 5 years and took them to the playoffs twice and was fired from there after a playoff loss.

None.

And you almost made your own point – those franchises haven’t done much since. Or it took a long time to get back to those playoffs. This was the first Chiefs playoff win since ’93. Getting to the playoffs is hard to do.

Have there been instances where Burfict/Jones have gone out of hand during meetings and such? Do you know if players have actually said these things? Or is it just a big puffed up story?

There were reports of players being late to meetings (came out after the Steeler game of course), but Adam Jones said in his interview that he can only think of 2 instances during his whole career at Cincinnati......


Not that I’m aware of, at all. There have only been two players disciplined during games for something (Jeremy Hill at San Fran, Rey Maualuga vs. Balt) and Hill’s was for missing/being late to a meeting. Reggie Nelson admitted to us on Beyond the Stripes that he routinely fell asleep in meetings and Adam would wake him up. For as emotional as those two guys are, this year, all I ever heard was how in tuned to the game plan and the playbook those two guys were. And their play proved it.

I did a follow up story to some of those tweets/NFL.com story about Marvin having lost the locker room. No player I talked to was buying it – and I gave them the leeway to do so, speak out. Now, I only talked to 8 guys, but that’s more than the 1-2 the other people talked to in the heat of the moment following that loss.