1968 Cincinnati Bengals season

1968 Cincinnati Bengals season
Head coachPaul Brown
Home fieldNippert Stadium
Results
Record3–11
Division place5th AFL West
Playoff finishDid not qualify
AFL All-Stars
3
Team ROYPaul Robinson

The 1968 Cincinnati Bengals season was the franchise's inaugural season. Their head coach was Paul Brown, who left the Cleveland Browns following the 1962 season with National Football League (NFL) record of 115–49–6, seven conference titles, and three NFL championships. His son Mike Brown did a study on pro football expansion and recommended Cincinnati as a potential site. In 1965, Brown met with Governor of Ohio James Rhodes and the two agreed the state could accommodate a second pro football team. The team recorded its first win in franchise history in week 2 with a 24–10 victory over the Denver Broncos.

Timeline to establishment

  • 1966 – Fearful the Cincinnati Reds baseball team would leave town and feeling pressure from local businessmen pushing for a pro football franchise, Cincinnati's city council approved the construction of Riverfront Stadium.
  • 1967 – Brown's group was awarded an American Football League (AFL) expansion franchise. Brown named the team the Bengals, the name of Cincinnati's pro teams in the old AFL of the late 1930s. The Bengals acquired their first player late in the year when they traded two draft picks to Miami for quarterback John Stofa.

Offseason

Common draft

Main article: 1968 NFL draft
1968 Cincinnati Bengals draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 2 Bob Johnson *  Center Tennessee
2 28 Bill Staley  Defensive end Utah State
2 55 Tom Smiley  Running back Lamar
3 56 Gary Davis  Quarterback Vanderbilt
3 82 Paul Robinson *  Running back Arizona
3 83 Dale Livingston  Placekicker Western Michigan
4 84 Jess Phillips  Defensive back Michigan State
4 109 Warren McVea  Running back Houston
5 112 Dave Middendorf  Guard Washington State
5 138 Al Beauchamp  Linebacker Southern
6 139 Howard Fest  Offensive tackle Texas
6 143 Bill Kindricks  Defensive tackle Alabama A&M
6 145 John Neidert  Linebacker Louisville
6 155 Dewey Warren  Quarterback Tennessee
6 156 Essex Johnson  Defensive back Grambling State
6 158 Elmo Maple  Wide receiver Southern
6 160 Sidney Ellis  Defensive back Jackson State
6 163 Charles Williams  Running back Arkansas–Pine Bluff
6 165 Jim Johnson  Defensive back South Carolina State
7 166 Steve Smith  Tight end Miami (FL)
7 192 Wes Bean  Linebacker Grambling State
8 193 Harry Gunner  Linebacker Oregon State
8 219 Ed Brantley  Offensive tackle North Texas
9 220 Phil Johnson  Defensive back Long Beach State
9 246 Steve Hanrahan  Defensive tackle Weber State
10 247 Wayne Patrick  Running back Louisville
10 273 James Russell  Wide receiver North Texas
11 274 Wally Scott  Defensive back Arizona
11 300 Jeff Banks  Linebacker Pacific
12 301 Bob Trumpy *  Tight end Utah
12 327 Harold Jones  Offensive tackle Grambling State
13 328 James Bivins  Linebacker Texas Southern
13 354 Teddy Washington  Running back San Diego State
14 355 Les Webster  Running back Iowa State
14 381 Steve Lewicke  Wide receiver UTEP
15 382 Harvey Palmore  Guard Morgan State
15 408 Joe Mira  Wide receiver Miami (FL)
16 409 James Williams  Defensive back Alcorn State
16 435 Brown Marks  Linebacker Indiana (PA)
17 436 Don Manning  Linebacker UCLA
17 462 Jimmy Smith  Tight end Jackson State
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[1]

Preseason

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance
1 August 3 Kansas City Chiefs L 14–38 0–1 Nippert Stadium 21,682
2 August 10 at Denver Broncos L 13–15 0–2 Denver University Stadium 13,841
3 August 17 Buffalo Bills L 6–10 0–3 Nippert Stadium 20,111
4 August 25 Pittsburgh Steelers W 19–3 1–3 Old Mountaineer Field 11,500
5 August 30 New York Jets W 13–9 2–3 Memphis Memorial Stadium 24,358

[2]

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap
1 September 6 at San Diego Chargers L 13–29 0–1 San Diego Stadium 33,687 Recap
2 September 15 Denver Broncos W 24–10 1–1 Nippert Stadium 25,049 Recap
3 September 22 Buffalo Bills W 34–23 2–1 Nippert Stadium 24,045 Recap
4 September 29 San Diego Chargers L 10–31 2–2 Nippert Stadium 28,642 Recap
5 October 6 at Denver Broncos L 7–10 2–3 Mile High Stadium 41,257 Recap
6 October 13 at Kansas City Chiefs L 3–13 2–4 Municipal Stadium 47,096 Recap
7 October 20 Miami Dolphins L 22–24 2–5 Nippert Stadium 25,942 Recap
8 October 27 at Oakland Raiders L 10–31 2–6 Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum 37,083 Recap
9 November 3 Houston Oilers L 17–27 2–7 Nippert Stadium 24,012 Recap
10 November 10 Kansas City Chiefs L 9–16 2–8 Nippert Stadium 25,537 Recap
11 November 17 at Miami Dolphins W 38–21 3–8 Miami Orange Bowl 31,747 Recap
12 November 24 Oakland Raiders L 0–34 3–9 Nippert Stadium 27,116 Recap
13 December 1 at Boston Patriots L 14–33 3–10 Fenway Park 17,796 Recap
14 December 8 at New York Jets L 14–27 3–11 Shea Stadium 61,111 Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

[3][4]

Standings

AFL Western Division
W L T PCT DIV PF PA STK
Oakland Raiders 12 2 0 .857 6–2 453 233 W8
Kansas City Chiefs 12 2 0 .857 7–1 371 170 W5
San Diego Chargers 9 5 0 .643 5–3 382 310 L2
Denver Broncos 5 9 0 .357 1–7 275 404 L3
Cincinnati Bengals 3 11 0 .214 1–7 215 329 L3

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings in the AFL.

Game summaries

Week 1

  • Friday September 6, 1968
1 2 3 4 Total
Bengals 7 3 3 0 13
Chargers 10 0 13 6 29

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Game time:
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance:
  • Referee:
  • TV announcers:
CIN SDG
CIN Paul Robinson 2-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 7 0
SDG Dennis Partee 42-yard field goal 7 3
SDG Dickie Post 48-yard rush (Dennis Partee kick) 7 10
CIN Dale Livingston 22-yard field goal 10 10
SDG Brad Hubbert 1-yard rush (Dennis Partee kick) 10 17
CIN Dale Livingston 35-yard field goal 13 17
SDG Willie Frazier 48-yard pass from John Hadl (kick failed) 13 23
SDG Willie Frazier 56-yard pass from John Hadl (kick failed) 13 29
CIN SDG
First downs 13 27
Rush-yards-TDs 30–122–1 33–229–2
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 14–26–125–0–1 20–37–325–2–0
Sacked-yards 2–21 0–0
Net pass yards 104 325
Total yards 226 554
Fumbles-lost 4–1 2–2
Turnovers 2 2
Penalties-yards 5–56 10–100

Week 2

  • Sunday September 15
Week 2
1 2 3 4 Final
Denver Broncos (0–1–0) 0 0 3 7 10
Cincinnati Bengals (1–1–0) 0 0 10 14 24
DEN CIN
CIN Dale Livingston 49-yard field goal 0 3
CIN Bob Trumpy 58-yard pass from John Stofa (Dale Livingston kick) 0 10
DEN Bob Humphreys 33-yard field goal 3 10
DEN Eric Crabtree 5-yard pass from Jim M. LeClair (Bob Humphreys kick) 10 10
CIN Warren McVea 54-yard pass from John Stofa (Dale Livingston kick) 10 17
CIN Essex Johnson 35-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 10 24
DEN CIN
First downs 15 11
Rush-yards-TDs 25–78–0 27–104–1
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 14–33–171–1–1 12–22–224–2–0
Sacked-yards 4–50 3–39
Net pass yards 121 185
Total yards 199 289
Fumbles-lost 2–0 1–0
Turnovers 1 0
Penalties-yards 2–15 2–24

Week 3

  • Sunday September 22
Week 3
1 2 3 4 Final
Buffalo Bills (0–3–0) 0 7 7 9 23
Cincinnati Bengals (2–1–0) 10 0 10 14 34
BUF CIN
CIN Dale Livingston 11-yard field goal 0 3
CIN Warren McVea 80-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 0 10
BUF Max Anderson 14-yard rush (Mike Mercer kick) 7 10
BUF Gary McDermott 5-yard rush (Mike Mercer kick) 14 10
CIN Dale Livingston 39-yard field goal 14 13
CIN Charlie King 32-yard interception return (Dale Livingston kick) 14 20
CIN Al Beauchamp 17-yard interception return (Dale Livingston kick) 14 27
BUF Max Anderson 100-yard kickoff return (Mike Mercer kick) 21 27
BUF Safety, Robinson tackled in end zone 23 27
CIN Tommie Smiley 1-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 23 34
BUF CIN
First downs 17 9
Rush-yards-TDs 24–92–2 29–149–2
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 15–36–160–0–2 8–18–68–0–1
Sacked-yards 5–37 2–16
Net pass yards 123 52
Total yards 215 201
Fumbles-lost 1–0 2–1
Turnovers 2 2
Penalties-yards 5–65 6–34

Week 4

Sunday September 29

Week 4
1 2 3 4 Final
San Diego Chargers (3–0–0) 0 17 0 14 31
Cincinnati Bengals (2–2–0) 3 0 7 0 10
SDG CIN
CIN Dale Livingston 21-yard field goal 0 3
SDG Gary Garrison 10-yard pass from John Hadl (Dennis Partee kick) 7 3
SDG Dennis Partee 21-yard field goal 10 3
SDG Gary Garrison 19-yard pass from John Hadl (Dennis Partee kick) 17 3
CIN Essex Johnson 6-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 17 10
SDG John Hadl 2-yard rush (Dennis Partee kick) 24 10
SDG John Hadl 1-yard rush (Dennis Partee kick) 31 10
SDG CIN
First downs 18 14
Rush-yards-TDs 37–101–2 25–66–1
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 11–24–215–2–1 17–29–153–0–2
Sacked-yards 1–14 3–24
Net pass yards 201 129
Total yards 302 195
Fumbles-lost 0–0 0–0
Turnovers 1 2
Penalties-yards 6–51 8–90

Week 5

Sunday October 6

Week 5
1 2 3 4 Final
Cincinnati Bengals (2–3–0) 0 7 0 0 7
Denver Broncos (1–3–0) 0 0 3 7 10
CIN DEN
CIN Bobby Hunt 5-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 7 0
DEN Bobby Howfield 34-yard field goal 7 3
DEN Mike Haffner 4-yard pass from Steve Tensi (Bobby Howfield kick) 7 10
CIN DEN
First downs 15 11
Rush-yards-TDs 37–111–1 23–99–0
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 15–38–139–0–0 14–34–125–1–0
Sacked-yards 1–3 2–13
Net pass yards 136 112
Total yards 247 211
Fumbles-lost 3–1 1–0
Turnovers 1 0
Penalties-yards 5–49 3–28

Week 6

Sunday October 13

Week 6
1 2 3 4 Final
Cincinnati Bengals (2–4–0) 0 0 3 0 3
Kansas City Chiefs (5–1–0) 0 3 3 7 13
CIN KAN
KAN Jan Stenerud 52-yard field goal 0 3
CIN Dale Livingston 15-yard field goal 3 3
KAN Jan Stenerud 46-yard field goal 3 6
KAN Robert Holmes 1-yard rush (Jan Stenerud kick) 3 13
CIN KAN
First downs 7 15
Rush-yards-TDs 28–99–0 40–136–1
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 7–19–48–0–1 11–17–152–0–1
Sacked-yards 3–31 3–23
Net pass yards 17 129
Total yards 116 265
Fumbles-lost 1–0 2–1
Turnovers 1 2
Penalties-yards 3–25 5–42

Week 7

Sunday October 20

Week 7
1 2 3 4 Final
Miami Dolphins (2–3–1) 10 0 0 14 24
Cincinnati Bengals (2–5–0) 0 2 14 6 22
MIA CIN
MIA Jimmy Keyes 26-yard field goal 3 0
MIA Karl Noonan 2-yard pass from Bob Griese (Jimmy Keyes kick) 10 0
CIN Safety, Gunner tackled Griese in end zone 10 2
CIN Essex Johnson 41-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 10 9
CIN Paul Robinson 1-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 10 16
MIA Karl Noonan 20-yard pass from Bob Griese (Jimmy Keyes kick) 17 16
MIA Stan Mitchell 31-yard pass from Bob Griese (Jimmy Keyes kick) 24 16
CIN Bob Trumpy 45-yard pass from Dewey Warren (pass failed) 24 22
MIA CIN
First downs 21 14
Rush-yards-TDs 38–139–0 30–143–2
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 16–29–186–3–0 14–21–184–1–1
Sacked-yards 4–29 0–0
Net pass yards 157 184
Total yards 296 327
Fumbles-lost 1–0 3–2
Turnovers 0 3
Penalties-yards 2–11 2–10

Week 8

Sunday October 28

Week 8
1 2 3 4 Final
Cincinnati Bengals (2–6–0) 0 7 3 0 10
Oakland Raiders (5–2–0) 7 7 14 3 31
CIN OAK
OAK Fred Biletnikoff 14-yard pass from Daryle Lamonica (George Blanda kick) 0 7
OAK Roger Hagberg 7-yard rush (George Blanda kick) 0 14
CIN Paul Robinson 87-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 7 14
OAK Fred Biletnikoff 12-yard pass from Daryle Lamonica (George Blanda kick) 7 21
CIN Dale Livingston 37-yard field goal 10 21
OAK Roger Hagberg 7-yard pass from Daryle Lamonica (George Blanda kick) 10 28
OAK George Blanda 48-yard field goal 10 31
CIN OAK
First downs 8 26
Rush-yards-TDs 28–169–1 42–265–1
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 11–19–95–0–1 17–34–205–3–1
Sacked-yards 7–36 4–31
Net pass yards 59 174
Total yards 228 439
Fumbles-lost 3–1 2–2
Turnovers 2 3
Penalties-yards 6–90 5–78

Week 9

Sunday November 3

Week 9
1 2 3 4 Final
Houston Oilers (4–5–0) 10 7 7 3 27
Cincinnati Bengals (2–7–0) 0 3 7 7 17
HOU CIN
HOU Wayne Walker 27-yard field goal 3 0
HOU Alvin Reed 5-yard pass from Don Trull (Wayne Walker kick) 10 0
CIN Dale Livingston 28-yard field goal 10 3
HOU Hoyle Granger 1-yard rush (Wayne Walker kick) 17 3
CIN Paul Robinson 4-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 17 10
HOU Mac Haik 10-yard pass from Don Trull (Wayne Walker kick) 24 10
HOU Wayne Walker 41-yard field goal 27 10
CIN Paul Robinson 68-yard pass from Sam Wyche (Dale Livingston kick) 27 17
HOU CIN
First downs 21 21
Rush-yards-TDs 37–159–1 26–179–1
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 14–23–212–2–0 20–25–228–1–0
Sacked-yards 1–10 5–33
Net pass yards 202 195
Total yards 361 374
Fumbles-lost 1–0 1–0
Turnovers 0 0
Penalties-yards 3–35 4–45

Week 10

Sunday November 10

Week 10
1 2 3 4 Final
Kansas City Chiefs (8–2–0) 3 3 0 10 16
Cincinnati Bengals (2–8–0) 0 3 6 0 9
KAN CIN
KAN Jan Stenerud 30-yard field goal 3 0
CIN Dale Livingston 29-yard field goal 3 3
KAN Jan Stenerud 11-yard field goal 6 3
CIN Dale Livingston 16-yard field goal 6 6
CIN Dale Livingston 23-yard field goal 6 9
KAN Jan Stenerud 17-yard field goal 9 9
KAN Robert Holmes 27-yard rush (Jan Stenerud kick) 16 9
KAN CIN
First downs 16 15
Rush-yards-TDs 39–255–1 30–157–0
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 5–15–62–0–1 12–21–161–0–2
Sacked-yards 1–13 6–35
Net pass yards 49 126
Total yards 304 283
Fumbles-lost 0–0 0–0
Turnovers 1 2
Penalties-yards 4–45 3–44

Week 11

Sunday, November 17

Week 11
1 2 3 4 Final
Cincinnati Bengals (3–8–0) 0 17 0 21 38
Miami Dolphins (3–6–1) 7 0 14 0 21
CIN MIA
MIA Stan Mitchell 48-yard pass from Bob Griese (Jimmy Keyes kick) 0 7
CIN Bob Trumpy 80-yard pass from Sam Wyche (Dale Livingston kick) 7 7
CIN Dale Livingston 12-yard field goal 10 7
CIN Paul Robinson 54-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 17 7
MIA Karl Noonan 7-yard pass from Bob Griese (Jimmy Keyes kick) 17 14
MIA Stan Mitchell 38-yard pass from Bob Griese (Jimmy Keyes kick) 17 21
CIN Warren McVea 55-yard pass from John Stofa (Dale Livingston kick) 24 21
CIN Paul Robinson 15-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 31 21
CIN Paul Robinson 5-yard rush (Dale Livingston kick) 38 21
CIN MIA
First downs 17 16
Rush-yards-TDs 38–179–3 23–122–0
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 9–17–243–2–0 16–31–253–3–1
Sacked-yards 0–0 6–49
Net pass yards 243 204
Total yards 422 326
Fumbles-lost 2–1 3–1
Turnovers 1 2
Penalties-yards 2–31 3–22

Week 12

Sunday November 24

Week 12
1 2 3 4 Final
Oakland Raiders (9–2–0) 7 7 6 14 34
Cincinnati Bengals (3–9–0) 0 0 0 0 0
OAK CIN
OAK Charlie H. Smith 7-yard rush (George Blanda kick) 7 0
OAK Hewritt Dixon 5-yard pass from Daryle Lamonica (George Blanda kick) 14 0
OAK George Blanda 43-yard field goal 17 0
OAK George Blanda 27-yard field goal 20 0
OAK Charlie H. Smith 9-yard rush (George Blanda kick) 27 0
OAK Billy Cannon 12-yard pass from George Blanda (George Blanda kick) 34 0
OAK CIN
First downs 33 7
Rush-yards-TDs 46–208–2 25–116–0
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 26–34–396–2–0 7–14–44–0–1
Sacked-yards 0–0 2–12
Net pass yards 396 32
Total yards 604 148
Fumbles-lost 2–1 2–2
Turnovers 1 3
Penalties-yards 9–92 5–52

Week 13

Sunday December 1

Week 13
1 2 3 4 Final
Cincinnati Bengals (3–10–0) 0 0 7 7 14
Boston Patriots (4–8–0) 2 24 0 7 33
CIN BOS
BOS Safety, Satcher tackled Robinson in end zone 0 2
BOS Gino Cappelletti 27-yard field goal 0 5
BOS Jim Whalen 11-yard pass from Tom Sherman (Gino Cappelletti kick) 0 12
BOS Gino Cappelletti 18-yard pass from Tom Sherman (Gino Cappelletti kick) 0 19
BOS Jim Nance 5-yard rush (Gino Cappelletti kick) 0 26
CIN Estes Banks 5-yard pass from John Stofa (Rod Sherman kick) 7 26
BOS Jim Whalen 21-yard pass from Tom Sherman (Gino Cappelletti kick) 7 33
CIN Rod Sherman 27-yard pass from John Stofa (Rod Sherman kick) 14 33
CIN BOS
First downs 14 20
Rush-yards-TDs 30–106–0 37–129–1
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 18–37–126–2–1 12–25–142–3–1
Sacked-yards 2–20 0–0
Net pass yards 106 142
Total yards 212 271
Fumbles-lost 2–0 1–1
Turnovers 1 2
Penalties-yards 3–35 2–19

Week 14

Sunday December 8

Week 14
1 2 3 4 Final
Cincinnati Bengals (3–11–0) 0 7 0 7 14
New York Jets (10–3–0) 14 3 3 7 27
CIN NYJ
NYJ George Sauer 10-yard pass from Joe Namath (Jim Turner kick) 0 7
NYJ Don Maynard 12-yard pass from Joe Namath (Jim Turner kick) 0 14
CIN Paul Robinson 14-yard rush (Rod Sherman kick) 7 14
NYJ Jim Turner 35-yard field goal 7 17
NYJ Jim Turner 22-yard field goal 7 20
CIN Jim Griffin 0-yard fumble return (Rod Sherman kick) 14 20
NYJ Bake Turner 34-yard pass from Babe Parilli (Jim Turner kick) 14 27
CIN NYJ
First downs 6 19
Rush-yards-TDs 38–107–1 29–85–0
Comp-Att-Yd-TD-INT 3–7–58–0–0 21–39–299–3–1
Sacked-yards 1–7 1–13
Net pass yards 51 286
Total yards 158 371
Fumbles-lost 3–1 1–1
Turnovers 1 2
Penalties-yards 1–5 3–29

Personnel

Staff/Coaches

1968 Cincinnati Bengals staff
Front office

Coaching Staff

Offensive coaches

  Defensive coaches

[5]

Final roster

1968 Cincinnati Bengals roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams

Rookies in italics
56 active, 0 reserve, 0 practice squad

Awards and records

AFL Rookie of the Year

AFL Pro Bowl Selections

Highlights

Paul Robinson led the AFL in rushing with 1023 yards and was named Rookie of the Year.

References

  1. ^ "1968 Cincinnati Bengals draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 16, 2014.
  2. ^ "1968 Cincinnati Bengals". The Pro Football Archives. Maher Sports Media. Retrieved December 9, 2012.
  3. ^ "1968 Final Statistics (3–11–0)" (PDF). Cincinnati Bengals. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 3, 2014. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
  4. ^ "Cincinnati Bengals History: 1968". Cincinnati Bengals. Archived from the original on November 14, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
  5. ^ "1968 Cincinnati Bengals (AFL) - Pro Football Archives".