Can we please fire Marvin Lewis?

The NFL coaching carousel got off to a blazing start on black Monday by actually jumping the gun and firing coaches on Sunday. Jack Del Rio, former Oakland Raiders head coach, basically had to fire himself at the post-game press conference. Other notable job openings include the Colts and the Cardinals both intriguing landing spots for any potential suitor. Surprising enough the Cincinnati Bengals head coaching position belongs to Marvin Lewis.

Lewis’s 15 year career with the Bengals has certainly had its up and downs and people were expecting a change following a lackluster 7-9 season and missing the playoffs for the second straight campaign. While it seemed inevitable that the Bengals would finally move on from Lewis, his contract got extended for another two years. The extension of Lewis has caused Cincinnatians to question the front office and owner Mike Brown.

Ok, so obviously I am a huge Bengals fan, and just like any irrational fan I’m ready to fire the entire organization after one measly loss. With that being said, Marvin needed to go. He has very clearly reached the end of his rope in Cincinnati.

Don’t get me wrong the guy has done great things and brought the organization back from Browns level failure. Even though he has made the Bengals relevant again (kinda) it still feels like he has drastically underachieved.

The roster is very talented, you have a franchise QB (kinda), a top three wide receiver, and play-makers on defense led by Geno Atkins and Vontaze Burfict. I speak for the entire fan-base when I say that these teams led by Marvin Lewis have never reached their full potential. It isn’t hard to see that a team with the talent of the Bengals should have at least one playoff win by now.

As they say, talent only goes so far. Think about this… how many times have you been watching the Bengals play on Sunday and they come out blazing? They look like the team we all thought they were. Everything is clicking and all is good in the Queen City, then all of a sudden it just comes crashing down, like the pilot to Lost. I have never seen a coach as bad at halftime adjustments as Marvin Lewis.

The game that encapsulates this perfectly was the Monday night game against the Steelers on December 4. At the time, the Bengals were right in the thick of a mediocre playoff race and playing a division rival on MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL. Marvin and co. took off on the Steelers and it seemed like they could do no wrong. That talent I was talking about was in full force. The Bengals went into the locker room up 17-3. Want to know the final score? You guessed it. Steelers 23 Bengals 20. A whole three points in the second half. A total implode that we are accustomed to seeing. Why? Did the players just “not want it enough”? Absolutely not.

Year in and year out we see the same old song and dance. For being the second longest tenured coach in the NFL Marvin has had literally nothing to show for it. This year seemed like the perfect time to cut ties, but here we are heading into a new off-season with Lewis at the helm. Hopefully, this extension is a successful one and Marvin makes me eat my words but for now I have one question.