The 2003 Cincinnati Bengals season was the franchise's 34th season in the National Football League (NFL), the 36th overall, and the first under head coach Marvin Lewis, who replaced Dick LeBeau, who was fired following the 2002 season which the worst season in Bengals history. The Bengals had the first overall pick in the 2003 NFL draft with which they selected 2002 Heisman Trophy winner Carson Palmer. After a slow start, the Bengals got hot winning at midseason, winning four straight games to stand at 7–5, entering a key Week 14 matchup with the Baltimore Ravens with a chance to win the division. However, in the key showdown for first place the Bengals showed they were not quite ready for primetime as they were beaten 31–13. The Bengals would rebound to win their next game against the San Francisco 49ers, but at 8–6 the Bengals could not get that ninth win, losing their last two games to spoil an effort to earn their first winning season since 1990, finishing at 8–8.

Along with Willie Anderson, Chad Johnson, for the first time in his career, was named to the Pro Bowl at the end of the season.

Offseason The Bengals lost fullback Lorenzo Neal and linebacker Takeo Spikes in free agency, while signing cornerback Tory James, safety Rogers Beckett, linebacker Kevin Hardy, defensive tackle John Thornton, tight end Reggie Kelly, quarterback Shane Matthews and defensive ends Duane Clemons and Carl Powell. Additions SubtractionsDT John Thornton (Titans) QB Gus Frerotte (Vikings)QB Shane Matthews (Redskins) LB Takeo Spikes (Bills)S Rogers Beckett (Chargers) FB Lorenzo Neal (Chargers)TE Reggie Kelly (Falcons) QB Akili Smith (Packers)LB Kevin Hardy (Cowboys) K Neil Rackers (Cardinals)CB Tory James (Raiders) DE Reinard Wilson (Buccaneers)DE Duane Clemons (Chiefs) FB Nick Luchey (Packers)DE Carl Powell (Redskins) DE Eric Ogbogu (Cowboys) LB Steve Foley (Texans)

NFL draft

Personnel

Roster

Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance 1 September 7 Denver Broncos L 10–30 0–1 Paul Brown Stadium 63,820 2 September 14 at Oakland Raiders L 20–23 0–2 Network Associates Coliseum 50,135 3 September 21 Pittsburgh Steelers L 10–17 0–3 Paul Brown Stadium 64,596 4 September 28 at Cleveland Browns W 21–14 1–3 Cleveland Browns Stadium 73,428 5 October 5 at Buffalo Bills L 16–22 ( 1–4 Ralph Wilson Stadium 72,615 6 Bye 7 October 19 Baltimore Ravens W 34–26 2–4 Paul Brown Stadium 53,553 8 October 26 Seattle Seahawks W 27–24 3–4 Paul Brown Stadium 52,131 9 November 2 at Arizona Cardinals L 14–17 3–5 Sun Devil Stadium 23,531 10 November 9 Houston Texans W 34–27 4–5 Paul Brown Stadium 50,437 11 November 16 Kansas City Chiefs W 24–19 5–5 Paul Brown Stadium 64,923 12 November 23 at San Diego Chargers W 34–27 6–5 Qualcomm Stadium 52,069 13 November 30 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 24–20 7–5 Heinz Field 58,797 14 December 7 at Baltimore Ravens L 13–31 7–6 M&T Bank Stadium 69,468 15 December 14 San Francisco 49ers W 41–38 8–6 Paul Brown Stadium 64,666 16 December 21 at St. Louis Rams L 10–27 8–7 Edward Jones Dome 66,061 17 December 28 Cleveland Browns L 14–22 8–8 Paul Brown Stadium 65,362

Note: Intra-divisional opponents are in bold text

Standings

Team leaders Passing Player Att Comp Yds TD INT Rating Jon Kitna 324 520 3591 26 15 87.4

Rushing Player Att Yds YPC Long TD Rudi Johnson 215 957 4.5 54 9

Receiving Player Rec Yds Avg Long TD Chad Johnson 90 1355 15.1 82 10

Defensive Player Tackles Sacks INTs FF FR Kevin Hardy 124 1.5 0 1 1 Duane Clemons 63 6.0 0 1 1 John Thornton 60 6.0 0 1 2 Tory James 68 1.0 4 0 0

Kicking and punting Player FGA FGM FG% XPA XPM XP% Points Shayne Graham 25 22 88.0% 40 40 100.0% 106 Player Punts Yards Long Blkd Avg. Kyle Richardson 49 1961 58 0 40.0

Special teams Player KR KRYards KRAvg KRLong KRTD PR PRYards PRAvg PRLong PRTD Brandon Bennett 53 1146 21.6 46 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Peter Warrick 0 0 0.0 0 0 25 273 10.9 68 1

Awards Jon Kitna QB, NFL Comeback Player of the Year

Milestones Chad Johnson 2nd 1000 yard receiving season (1,355 yards) Brandon Bennett 2nd 1000-yard return season (1,146 yards)

References

External links

2003 Cincinnati Bengals at Pro-Football-Reference.com