Cincinnati Bengals: Playoff Curse, Bad Luck or Just Bad?

The Cincinnati Bengals have been excellent, except in the NFL playoffs. Is there a playoff curse on the team, a lot of bad luck, or are they simply bad?

Dan Salem and Todd Salem debate in today’s NFL Sports Debate. Two brothers from New York yell, scream, and debate sports.

TODD:

There are three possibilities pertaining to the Cincinnati Bengals and their pursuit of NFL playoff glory. Option number one: the franchise is jinxed. Number two: the organization is simply unlucky. Number three: the Bengals are neither of these things.

Postseason success has seemed unattainable, and it is not due to a lack of talent or chances. Cincinnati has had a number of very good teams with chances to advance through the AFC playoffs; it has simply not happened. One of these three options has to be the reason why.

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There is an easy case to be made for the existence of a jinx. The team hasn’t won a playoff game of any kind since 1990. It has made the postseason five consecutive seasons and seven of the past 11, losing in the first round in each opportunity. Carson Palmer was knocked out almost immediately of the 2005 wildcard game. There were the fumble and personal fouls that derailed last year’s team, as well as the injury to Andy Dalton before the playoffs began.

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However the case for a jinx falls flat because there is no reason for Cincy to be jinxed. It didn’t sell Babe Ruth to its rival. It didn’t kill a goat (or whatever that stupid Cubs curse is about). Why would the Bengals be cursed? There is no origin story. I don’t buy the flimsy Bo Jackson story (via Anthony Cosenza of Cincy Jungle).

That opens up the door for unlucky. Having starting quarterbacks go down is unlucky. But having Dalton go down was not. The fans despised Dalton because of his previous playoff buffoonery. They got their secret wish of a game started by someone other than him, and the team still came up short. Committing fouls and fumbling are also not luck-based. Thus, there must be something else here.

I lean toward option number three. It doesn’t have a name; it just is. Marvin Lewis is the only coach in NFL history to be 0-7 in the playoffs. At this point, that matters. It matters that Dalton has performed so poorly during his playoff chances, yet it also mattered that the team had to play without him last year. The Bengals have been good for a number of years now, but they haven’t been good enough, and that includes physically and mentally.

It is hard to win in the NFL. I wouldn’t chalk that up to a jinx or luck or any esoteric phenomenon. Not being good enough is not the same as having some force going against you.

DAN:

The Bengals playoff woes go much deeper than Carson Palmer and Andy Dalton. The franchise has been around for 49 seasons and has played in a total of 19 playoff games. That’s over 30 seasons where they completely fell short. Of those 19 games, Cincinnati has only won five times in the playoffs. They are remarkably 0-2 in the Super Bowl. It seems unfathomable that they would have made it that far among all the futility.

Before Marvin Lewis took over as head coach, this was a very bad football team. He took control in 2003 and the Bengals promptly put up back to back seasons with an 8-8 record after managing only one such season in the twelve years prior. Now entering his 13th season with the team, Lewis has led the Bengals to a winning record seven times and each of the last five years. In fact, he only has three losing seasons on the books in Cincinnati. On the surface his tenure has been a resounding success, but as you pointed out, something is amuck in terms of the playoffs.

Saying the Bengals have simply not been good enough is unfair. They won ten or more games in each of the last four seasons and five of the last seven. Hell, they made the playoffs in six of the last seven seasons. The NFL is known for its yearly playoff turnover, with a select few teams holding any kind of consistency. Unbeknownst to almost everyone except Bengals’ fans, this team is a member of that very select club. Since I don’t believe in jinxes and Cincinnati lacks a solid story, this team is certainly unlucky.

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You’d think a team would win at least one playoff game in five straight years of playoff competition. You’d think that luck would favor them at least once, for one game against a team that is supposed to be inferior. Not so for the Bengals. Carson Palmer could never get over the hump with Cincinnati, but look at him now in Arizona. If Andy Dalton leaves, watch out! The Bengals keep getting better, but their luck remains the same. They likely make the playoffs again this season, only to lose their first game once again.