Bengals

Bengals Sign Marvin Lewis To Two-Year Extension

January 2, 2018

The Cincinnati Bengals announced that they’ve signed HC Marvin Lewis to a two-year extension through the 2019 season.

NEWS: #Bengals sign Head Coach Marvin Lewis to a two-year contract, running through the 2019 season. pic.twitter.com/FwdMelWeec

— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) January 2, 2018

Lewis released the following statement regarding his new deal with the Bengals:

“My job is to win a World Championship. We have a talented roster full of veteran leaders and emerging young stars and I am committed to making the necessary improvements to put this team in the best position to win.”

Here’s a statement from owner Mike Brown:

“Marvin Lewis has been an important member of the Cincinnati community and the Bengals family for the past 15 years, and we are happy to have reached this agreement. Marvin has made significant contributions during his time here. While recently we have fallen short of our expectations, we have full confidence in Marvin to re-establish winning football in 2018.”

A few weeks ago, reports surfaced that Lewis was planning to leave the organization after the 2017 season and will pursue opportunities elsewhere.

Lewis was in the final year of his contract and had been going year to year with Cincinnati, which left open the possibility of either parting moving in a new direction at some point.

However, Lewis later said that the reports of him planning to leave the team after the season are not accurate and hinted at the possibility of remaining with the team.

Some speculated that keeping Lewis could be an indication of owner Mike Brown not wanting a new head coach to make significant changes throughout the organization.

Lewis, 59, was hired as the Bengals’ head coach back in 2003 and has spent 14 seasons with the team. The expectations were for the Bengals to continue their string of playoff appearances but they’ve already clinched a losing season for the first time since 2010.

In total, the Bengals are 125-112-3 (52.7 percent) under Lewis, which includes seven trips to the postseason but no playoff wins.