Longtime Bengals fans, sports bars and retailers are hoping the Bengals can repeat last season’s magical run and eventually win the team’s first Super Bowl.
Mark Landers, of Miami Twp., said he hasn’t missed a Bengals game at the stadium in his 42 years as a fan. He predicts the team will win it all this year.
“I think Joe Burrow’s a winner,” Landers said of the team’s star quarterback. “He’s not one of these guys who’s like ‘Me first.’ He’s a team leader and I just think he’s made amazing progress. (That along) with the offensive line they’ve put together now, they already have a solid defense. I think they’re going to be excellent.”
The Bengals finished the 2021 regular season 10-7, then beat the Las Vegas Raiders, Tennessee Titans and Kansas City Chiefs to win the AFC Championship. Then the Bengals lost their third Super Bowl, a 23-20 thriller that saw the Los Angeles Rams score in the final two minutes, and the Bengals’ final drive stall at midfield.
Landers is predicting a 12-5 record and said he hasn’t been this excited for a season since the first time the Bengals appeared in the Super Bowl.
“I’ve been a fan even the years when they weren’t very good, and my two grandsons have gone to the games with me for years, and literally this is one of the first times they’ve been this excited,” Landers said. “So them being excited makes me excited.”
Jeremy Stewart of Springfield has been rooting for the Bengals for 20 years. His confidence in the team this year is boundless.
“They’re gonna win the Super Bowl,” he said, noting the main two reasons for that are Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase. “I don’t think there’s anything that’s going to stop them this year.”
Stewart predicts a 13-4 season this year because of improvements made to the offensive line.
Stewart said anyone who doubts his predictions of the team basking in Super Bowl glory next February should “just look at how Joe Burrow was in college; and look at what he did last year with Jamar Chase, Tee Higgins, Tyler Boyd and, of course, Joe Mixon,” he said.
Credit: Bill Lackey
Credit: Bill Lackey
A decade of Bengals seasons
| Year | Record | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 10-7-0 | 3-1 |
| 2020 | 4-11-1 | |
| 2019 | 2-14-0 | |
| 2018 | 6-10-0 | |
| 2017 | 7-9-0 | |
| 2016 | 6-9-1 | |
| 2015 | 12-4-0 | 0-1 |
| 2014 | 10-5-1 | 0-1 |
| 2013 | 11-5-0 | 0-1 |
| 2012 | 10-6-0 | 0-1 |
David Harris of Bellbrook said he believes the team will do well this season, but his 51 years as a Bengals fan has taught him to curb his enthusiasm.
“I’m cautiously optimistic,” he said. “I’ve been a Bengals fan so long and they always find a way to kind of mess things up. I hope that’s over with. I hope they’ll do well, but they’ve got a lot tougher schedule this year.”
Harris said he was “just tickled to death” the team got as far as it did with a lackluster offensive line, a deficiency he said was rectified during the offseason.
He predicts the Bengals will go 10-7 this season because of the toughness of their schedule. And because teams will be gunning for them because of their newfound stellar reputation, “they’re not going to be able to sneak up on anybody.”
That said, the division is likely theirs for the taking.
“The big thing is going to be them and Baltimore,” he said. “We’ll see. One game at a time.”
Shawn Crable, of Fairborn, said his expectation is “at least an AFC North Championship and (a) deep run into the playoffs.”
“There are many great teams this year in the AFC, but I believe that, barring any major injury, the Bengals should be able to go back to the Super Bowl if everything falls into place,” Crable said.
He predicts the team will go 13-4 “because they have addressed their biggest hole on the team in the offensive line.” Upgrades to that line were the biggest move the Bengals made all season, he said.
“It was one of the worst lines we have had all-time, so the four new starters are a huge upgrade,” he said. “Keeping Joe (Burrow) healthy is the most important aspect to staying competitive and I also believe what some are missing is that the run blocking will also be much better, allowing for Joe Mixon to have a great season.”
On the business side, Gold Star Chili once again is offering a buy one, get one free offer on three-, four- and five-ways the day after every Bengal victory at all locations.
Gina Genco, a spokeswoman for the Gold Star public relations firm, said fans are “really excited after the Super Bowl run” and Gold Star is looking forward to another successful partnership.
Nicole Cox, a spokeswoman for Roosters, which has several locations throughout the region, said the chain expects a “very busy” football season. That’s due to the anticipated success of the Bengals and the way people have adjusted their lifestyle after COVID-19.
“Now,” she said, “we don’t take things for granted. If we get a chance, we get out and have fun.”
Sports apparel retailer Rally House, which has locations in Beavercreek, Fairfield Twp., Liberty Twp., Miami Twp. and West Chester, has seen a boost in Bengals inventory to handle the increased demand for all things Bengals, according to district manager Teri Hauenschild.
“We probably increased by 50 percent,” Hauenschild said Thursday. “We’ve also opened additional locations in Cincinnati as well, so overall, we do have more as a company, it just might be spread out through more different stores.”
Rally House locations throughout southwest Ohio are “definitely seeing people who are super-excited to support the team earlier in the season,” she said.
“We’ve been very excited about the numbers all year round, but they’ve really ramped up with training camp,” she said.
Hauenschild said she used to have stores in Pittsburgh, where “everybody had a Steelers T-shirt.” With Cincinnati’s recent success, more people are showing up to southwest Ohio Rally House locations decked out in Bengals gear.
“People are showing every-day fan support, not just game-day fan support, which has been really exciting and great for business,” she said.
Fans turning out to watch the team in person will be heading into a familiar stadium with a new name. Renaming Paul Brown Stadium to Paycor Stadium benefits the Bengals.
“It makes our team a better team, a stronger team over time,” Bengals President Mike Brown said last week. “My father would have recognized that. For him, the team was always first. This puts our team, the Bengals, first. It is also a good arrangement for Paycor. It puts their brand out to be seen by all of Cincinnati on a regular basis, and when the Bengals play games, it will carry the Paycor brand across the country on television and radio.”
Credit: Bill Lackey
Credit: Bill Lackey
Raul Villar Jr., chief executive officer at Paycor, said fans walking into the renamed stadium is “an exciting moment for two great organizations and the city of Cincinnati.”
“We wanted to take our relationship to the next level, as supporting our hometown’s AFC Championship team aligns perfectly with Paycor’s mission of ‘Empowering Leaders to Build Winning Teams,’” he said. “We are ready to watch the Bengals compete to win and make the hometown proud.”
Paycor has been a long-standing partner and sponsor of the Bengals and has served as the team’s official and exclusive HR software provider since 2018, Villar Jr. said.
“Paycor has the exclusive naming rights to the stadium, which includes signage, hospitality and events, a community giving initiative and other multimedia assets,” he said. “Given the power and viewership of the NFL, we can now showcase the Paycor brand on a national scale like never before.”
HOW TO WATCH
WHAT: Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals
WHERE: Paycor Stadium, Cincinnati
WHEN: 1 p.m. Sunday
TV: CBS; RADIO: 104.7 WTUE, 700 WLW
