Brace Yourselves...

[Shake n Blake]

This defense of Marvin Lewis from Willie Anderson got me thinking. What if there are no serious changes? What if this winds up being 2010 all over again? Back then, Marvin went into the season as a supposed "lame duck". He responded by losing 10 straight on the way to a 4-12 season. Of course, we all know what happened afterward:



The only change made after that debacle was Bratkowski getting fired in way late January, after all the good candidates were taken. We did get lucky with Jay Gruden, but no other teams were sniffing him as an O coordinator candidate. So one change - a new OC - after a massively disappointing season (based on league-wide expectations) and 10 straight L's resulted in Mike Brown finally firing Bob Bratkowski after 3 straight years of finishing 22nd or worse in points. Wow.

Mike Brown has always been this way. Just check out this article from 2000 about Kenny Anderson's demotion.

Quote:Posted: Wednesday, December 27, 2000

CINCINNATI (AP) - The Cincinnati Bengals demoted offensive coordinator Ken Anderson on Tuesday, their only significant move following their 10th straight season without a winning record.

The Bengals scored only 185 points this season, the fewest in franchise history, and had the least-effective passing offense in the NFL.

Anderson, who as a quarterback led the Bengals to the Super Bowl in 1981 and holds many of the club's passing records, has been the offensive coordinator for the last four seasons. He was offered the chance to stay as an assistant coach next season.

In an anticipated move, linebackers coach Mark Duffner was elevated to defensive coordinator. Duffner takes over for Dick LeBeau, who was promoted to head coach following the third game of the season and got a contract extension last week.

No other coaching changes were made Tuesday, though LeBeau said some could happen when the offensive coordinator is picked.

The Bengals (4-12) have the NFL's worst record since 1990, the last time they had a winning season.

LeBeau said the circumstances this season - Bruce Coslet quit after an 0-3 start - made it difficult on the staff.

"This was a very unusual season for us," LeBeau said. "Certainly we did not have the success that we wanted to have, but that our football team continued to compete, I think, is important. If we do not produce more, then I think we all will be held to a sterner judgment this time next year."

That's not likely. General manager Mike Brown rarely makes more than a couple of changes in his staff following a bad season, preferring continuity in coaching.

From 1997-99, the Bengals went 14-34 but made only two changes in their assistant coaching staff.

Anderson has long been one of Brown's favorites, playing for the Bengals from 1971-86. He became quarterbacks coach in 1993 and was elevated to offensive coordinator during the 1996 season.

Anderson was in charge of developing quarterbacks David Klingler and Akili Smith, both of whom struggled.

This is who Mike Brown is. He will fight tooth and nail not to fire coaches. He's only fired 2 head coaches in 26 year span that includes 15 losing seasons and no playoff wins. Coordinators are usually given an incredible amount of rope, and really have to tank hard for several seasons to get fired.

So what will you do if Mike, Paul Alexander and crew are all back for another fun-filled season? What if the only change is hiring a permanent OC?