Cincinnati Bengals · Franchise era 3 of 6
The lost decade: the Cincinnati Bengals story
Franchise era
1992—2002
The lost decade
Cincinnati Bengals
The story in one sentence
Cincinnati went fourteen seasons without a winning record even as Dillon and a handful of draft successes supplied isolated excellence.
Instability overwhelms individual talent
Corey Dillon, Carl Pickens and Willie Anderson gave the era its recognizable core.
Its ending created the conditions for palmer and ochocinco revive the stadium.
Timeline
How it unfolded
Before 1992
What came before
Forrest Gregg's 1981 team and Sam Wyche's no-huddle 1988 team each reached the Super Bowl, both falling late to San Francisco.
1992—2002
The lost decade
Cincinnati went fourteen seasons without a winning record even as Dillon and a handful of draft successes supplied isolated excellence.
After 2002
What came next
Marvin Lewis brought credibility and Palmer's vertical offense won the 2005 division before injuries and inconsistency shortened the window.
The core