Cincinnati Bengals · Franchise era 1 of 6
Paul Brown's new team: the Cincinnati Bengals story
Franchise era
1968—1979
Paul Brown's new team
Cincinnati Bengals
The story in one sentence
Brown built Cincinnati with modern organization and passing concepts, reaching the playoffs in the team's third season and developing Anderson into its leader.
An expansion franchise learns through innovation
Ken Anderson, Isaac Curtis and Bob Johnson gave the era its recognizable core.
Its ending created the conditions for two afc championships.
Timeline
How it unfolded
The foundation
The franchise context
Paul Brown's expansion club grew into two distinct Super Bowl teams before Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase restored Cincinnati to the league's biggest stage.
1970-12-26
Divisional Round: Cincinnati Bengals vs Baltimore Colts
1973-12-23
Divisional Round: Cincinnati Bengals vs Miami Dolphins
1975-12-28
Divisional Round: Cincinnati Bengals vs Oakland Raiders
After 1979
What came next
Forrest Gregg's 1981 team and Sam Wyche's no-huddle 1988 team each reached the Super Bowl, both falling late to San Francisco.
The core