1996 Cincinnati Bengals season
Head coachDave Shula (first 7 games)
Bruce Coslet (last 9 games)
Home fieldCinergy Field
Results
Record8–8
Division place3rd AFC Central
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro BowlersWR Carl Pickens
CB Ashley Ambrose

The 1996 Cincinnati Bengals season was the franchise's 29th in professional football and its 27th with the National Football League. The Dave Shula era came to a sudden end when he was fired after a 1–6 start, as Jeff Blake struggled with turnovers. Former Bengals tight end Bruce Coslet, the team's offensive coordinator and a former New York Jets head coach, would replace Shula as head coach. The move paid off right away as the Bengals won the first three games under Coslet. After losing two of their next three games, the Bengals closed the year with three straight wins to finish with an 8–8 record.[1] One bright spot was that wide receiver Carl Pickens became the first member of the Bengals to have 100 receptions in a season.

Offseason

NFL Draft

1996 Cincinnati Bengals draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 10 Willie Anderson *  Offensive tackle Auburn
2 39 Marco Battaglia  Tight end Rutgers
3 69 Ken Blackman  Guard Illinois
4 108 Jevon Langford  Defensive end Oklahoma State
5 144 Greg Myers  Defensive back Colorado State
6 178 Tom Tumulty  Linebacker Pittsburgh
7 219 Rod Jones  Offensive tackle Kansas
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[2]

Undrafted free agents

1996 Undrafted Free Agents of note
Player Position College
Nick Ferguson Safety Georgia Tech
Chris Hetherington Fullback Yale
Damon Huard Quarterback Washington
Tim Morabito Defensive tackle Boston College

Personnel

Staff

1996 Cincinnati Bengals staff
Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

 Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

  • Special Teams – Joe Wessel

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and Conditioning – Kim Wood

Roster

1996 Cincinnati Bengals roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists


Practice squad

53 active, 6 inactive, 4 practice squad


Rookies in italics

[3]

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Attendance TV Time(EST) TV Announcers
1 September 1, 1996 at St. Louis Rams L 26–16 62,659 NBC 1:00pm Dan Hicks & Bart Oates
2 September 8, 1996 at San Diego Chargers L 27–14 55,880 NBC 4:00pm Jim Lampley & Bob Golic
3 September 15, 1996 New Orleans Saints W 30–15 45,412 FOX 1:00pm Kenny Albert & Tim Green
4 Bye
5 September 29, 1996 Denver Broncos L 14–10 51,798 NBC 1:00pm Charlie Jones & Randy Cross
6 October 6, 1996 Houston Oilers L 30–27 (OT) 44,680 TNT 8:00pm Verne Lundquist & Pat Haden
7 October 13, 1996 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 20–10 58,875 NBC 1:00pm Charlie Jones & Randy Cross
8 October 20, 1996 at San Francisco 49ers L 28–21 63,218 NBC 4:00pm Dick Enberg, Paul Maguire & Phil Simms
9 October 27, 1996 Jacksonville Jaguars W 28–21 45,890 NBC 1:00pm Don Criqui & Beasley Reece
10 November 3, 1996 at Baltimore Ravens W 24–21 60,743 NBC 1:00pm Don Criqui & Beasley Reece
11 November 10, 1996 Pittsburgh Steelers W 34–24 57,265 NBC 1:00pm Don Criqui & Beasley Reece
12 November 17, 1996 at Buffalo Bills L 31–17 75,549 NBC 1:00pm Don Criqui & Beasley Reece
13 November 24, 1996 Atlanta Falcons W 41–31 44,868 FOX 1:00pm Thom Brennaman & Ron Pitts
14 December 1, 1996 at Jacksonville Jaguars L 30–27 57,408 NBC 1:00pm Dan Hicks & Bart Oates
15 December 8, 1996 Baltimore Ravens W 21–14 43,022 NBC 1:00pm Jim Lampley & Bob Golic
16 December 15, 1996 at Houston Oilers W 21–13 15,131 NBC 4:00pm Jim Lampley & Bob Golic
17 December 22, 1996 Indianapolis Colts W 31–24 49,389 NBC 1:00pm Jim Lampley & Bob Golic

Standings

AFC Central
W L T PCT PF PA STK
(3) Pittsburgh Steelers 10 6 0 .625 344 257 L2
(5) Jacksonville Jaguars 9 7 0 .563 325 335 W5
Cincinnati Bengals 8 8 0 .500 372 369 W3
Houston Oilers 8 8 0 .500 345 319 W1
Baltimore Ravens 4 12 0 .250 371 441 L3

Team leaders

Passing

PlayerAttCompYdsTDINTRating
Jeff Blake5493083624241480.3

Rushing

PlayerAttYdsYPCLongTD
Garrison Hearst2258473.8240
Ki-Jana Carter912642.9318

Receiving

PlayerRecYdsAvgLongTD
Carl Pickens100118011.86112

Defensive

PlayerTacklesSacksINTsFFFR
Steve Tovar1043.0400
Dan Wilkinson446.5101
Ashley Ambrose502.0810

Kicking and punting

PlayerFGAFGMFG%XPAXPMXP%Points
Doug Pelfrey282382.1%4141100.0%110
PlayerPuntsYardsLongBlkdAvg.
Lee Johnson80363067145.4

Special teams

PlayerKRKRYardsKRAvgKRLongKRTDPRPRYardsPRAvgPRLongPRTD
David Dunn3578222.39017547.7200
Corey Sawyer1224120.1330151177.8620

Awards and records

  • Carl Pickens, Franchise Record, Most Receptions in One Season, 100 Receptions [4]
  • Carl Pickens, Led AFC, Receptions, 100 Receptions [5]

Milestones

  • Carl Pickens, 3rd 1000 Yard Receiving Season, 1,180 yards [6]

References

  1. ↑ Season summary and statistics at Sports E Cylclopedia
  2. ↑ "1996 Cincinnati Bengals Draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 28, 2014.
  3. ↑ "1996 Cincinnati Bengals starters, roster, and players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  4. ↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 37
  5. ↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 451
  6. ↑ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 440
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