The 2012 season was the Cincinnati Bengals' 43rd in the National Football League (NFL), their 45th overall, their 22nd under the leadership of owner and team president Mike Brown and their 10th under head coach Marvin Lewis. The team improved on their 2011 season, finishing tied with the Baltimore Ravens for the AFC North division title, but lost the tiebreaker to the Ravens. The Bengals, however, made the playoffs as a wild card team, finishing as the 6th seed in the AFC playoffs, but lost to the Houston Texans for a second consecutive season.
2012 was the first non-strike season in Bengals history in which they made it to the NFL playoffs for a second consecutive year.The Bengals made the playoffs in both 1981 and 1982, the latter of which was a strike-shortened nine-game season.
Draft
Notes The team acquired this first-round selection and a conditional 2013 second-round selection in trade that sent quarterback Carson Palmer to the Oakland Raiders. From Saints through the Patriots. The team acquired this fifth-round selection and a 2013 sixth-round selection in a trade that sent wide receiver Chad Ochocinco to the New England Patriots. The team acquired this fifth-round selection in a trade that sent linebacker Keith Rivers to the New York Giants. The team also traded its seventh-round selection (#228 overall) and cornerback David Jones to the Jacksonville Jaguars in exchange for safety Reggie Nelson.
Staff
Final roster
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 New York Jets W 17–6 1–0 Paul Brown Stadium Recap 2 at Atlanta Falcons W 24–19 2–0 Georgia Dome Recap 3 Green Bay Packers L 13–27 2–1 Paul Brown Stadium Recap 4 at Indianapolis Colts L 16–20 2–2 Lucas Oil Stadium Recap
Regular season
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 at Baltimore Ravens L 13–44 0–1 M&T Bank Stadium Recap 2 September 16 Cleveland Browns W 34–27 1–1 Paul Brown Stadium Recap 3 September 23 at Washington Redskins W 38–31 2–1 FedExField Recap 4 September 30 at Jacksonville Jaguars W 27–10 3–1 EverBank Field Recap 5 October 7 Miami Dolphins L 13–17 3–2 Paul Brown Stadium Recap 6 October 14 at Cleveland Browns L 24–34 3–3 Cleveland Browns Stadium Recap 7 October 21 Pittsburgh Steelers L 17–24 3–4 Paul Brown Stadium Recap 8Bye 9 November 4 Denver Broncos L 23–31 3–5 Paul Brown Stadium Recap 10 November 11 New York Giants W 31–13 4–5 Paul Brown Stadium Recap 11 November 18 at Kansas City Chiefs W 28–6 5–5 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 12 November 25 Oakland Raiders W 34–10 6–5 Paul Brown Stadium Recap 13 December 2 at San Diego Chargers W 20–13 7–5 Qualcomm Stadium Recap 14 December 9 Dallas Cowboys L 19–20 7–6 Paul Brown Stadium Recap 15 at Philadelphia Eagles W 34–13 8–6 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 16 December 23 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 13–10 9–6 Heinz Field Recap 17 December 30 Baltimore Ravens W 23–17 10–6 Paul Brown Stadium Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1: at Baltimore Ravens
The Bengals started their season on Monday Night Football against the Ravens. The first quarter was all Ravens as they put up a 10–0 lead when Justin Tucker kicked a 46-yard field goal followed up by Ray Rice running for a 7-yard TD. The Bengals got on the board in the 2nd quarter when Mike Nugent kicked a 34-yard field goal shortening the lead to 10–3. The Ravens pulled away when Anquan Boldin caught a 34-yard TD pass from Joe Flacco for a 17–3 game. The Bengals wrapped up the first half scoring with BenJarvus Green-Ellis running for a 6-yard TD for a 17–10 game. After the break, the Bengals came within 4 when Nugent nailed a 19-yard field goal for a 17–13 game. However, from that moment out it was all Ravens as Dennis Pitta caught a 10-yard TD pass from Joe Flacco for a 24–13 game followed by Tucker's 40-yard field goal to put them ahead 27–13 and Ed Reed's 40-yard interception return for a TD for a 34–13 game. In the last quarter, they wrapped the game up with Rice running for a 1-yard TD for a 41–13 game and Tucker's 39-yard field goal for a 44–13 final score.
With the loss, the Bengals started their season 0–1, losing their regular season opener for 4 out of the last 5 seasons dating back to 2008.
Week 2: vs. Cleveland Browns
After a tough loss on Monday Night Football, the Bengals returned home for Week 2 against the Browns. The Bengals were able to get the first points on the board with Adam "Pacman" Jones returning a punt 81 yards for a touchdown for a 7–0 lead. The Browns then shortened their lead to 4 points with Phil Dawson's 50-yard field goal to make the score 7–3. The Bengals then moved ahead by 11 points as Andy Dalton found A. J. Green on a 10-yard touchdown pass for a 14–3 lead, however the Browns again came within 4 as Trent Richardson ran for a touchdown from 32 yards out. The Bengals then moved ahead 17–10 with Mike Nugent's 39-yard field goal before halftime. Coming back, the Bengals increased their lead with Dalton finding Brandon Tate on a 44-yard pass for a 24–10 lead. However, The Browns drew closer as Brandon Weeden found Richardson on a 23-yard pass to shorten the game to 24–17. Then the Bengals moved up in the 4th quarter as Dalton found Andrew Hawkins on a 50-yard touchdown pass for a 31–17 lead but the Browns came within a touchdown after Weeden found Greg Little on a 24-yard pass to make the score 31–24. Mike Nugent then nailed a 37-yard field goal to give the Bengals a 34–24 lead then the Browns wrapped things up as Phil Dawson scored a 25-yard field goal for a final score of 34–27.
With the win, the Bengals improved to 1–1.
Week 3: at Washington Redskins
Sitting at 1–1, the Bengals traveled to Washington to face the Redskins, with rookie quarterback Robert Griffin III making his home debut. On the first play from scrimmage, Bengals' wide receiver and former college quarterback Mohamed Sanu launched a 73-yard touchdown to AJ Green to give Cincinnati an early touchdown advantage. Bengals third-year quarterback Andy Dalton started his day with a 0-yard interception touchdown by Rob Jackson that tied the game at seven, but soon went on an impressive tear the rest of the game. Dalton rebounded with a 48-yard touchdown to Armon Binns, part of 17 unanswered points by the Bengals that gave them a 24–7 lead late in the first half. Billy Cundiff added a late field goal that made the score 24–10, Cincinnati, at half time. The Redskins made a run at the Bengals in the third quarter, scoring back-to-back touchdowns on a touchdown run by Alfred Morris and a two-yard pass from Griffin to Santana Moss, which tied the game at 24. However, on the first two fourth-quarter drives for Cincinnati, Dalton gave his team the lead back—firing two touchdowns, one to Jermaine Gresham from six yards away, the other to Andrew Hawkins who dashed and weaved his way for a 59-yard score that put Cincinnati once again up 14, 38–24. Robert Griffin III scrambled and dived his way into the end zone with three-and-a-half minutes remaining, but the Redskins' comeback effort fell short as Griffin's hail Mary pass was knocked away on the final play.
With the win, the Bengals improved to 2–1.
Week 4: at Jacksonville Jaguars
With the win, the Bengals improved to 3–1, their 3rd 3–1 start under head coach Marvin Lewis.
Week 5: vs. Miami Dolphins
With the loss, the Bengals dropped to 3–2. With the Ravens' win over the Chiefs, the Bengals now sit in 2nd place in the AFC North.
Week 6: at Cleveland Browns
With the surprising loss, the Bengals dropped to 3–3 and their 4-game winning streak against the Browns was snapped.
Week 7: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
The Bengals went home for a divisional game against their longtime rival Steelers. The Steelers came into this stadium 0–3 in road games. Despite the Bengals holding an 11-point lead in the second quarter, it was erased as the Steelers won the game 24–17. The loss dropped the Bengals to 3–4 and 3rd place in the AFC North.
Week 9: vs. Denver Broncos
The Bengals returned home following their bye week for a week 9 matchup with the Denver Broncos. They entered the game having lost three straight games following their 3–1 start to the season. Entering the game, Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning had never lost to Cincinnati in his career. The two teams traded field goals early, with Broncos kicker Matt Prater connecting on a 43-yard field goal and the Bengals Mike Nugent successfully booting a 28-yard attempt. On the Broncos possession following the Bengals field goal, Peyton Manning masterfully moved the Broncos down the field, dissecting the Cincinnati secondary quickly, leading to an eight play, eighty yard drive, highlighted by a forty-five yard strike to receiver Demarious Thomas, and culminated with a thirteen-yard pass to Eric Decker for the score. Following the Broncos touchdown, Denver led 10–3. The Broncos increased their lead to a score of 17–3 on the opening kickoff of the second half, as receiver Trindon Holliday returned the football 105 yards for the score, dealing a sharp blow to a Bengals team that had previously been sticking close to the Broncos. The score appeared to motivate the Bengals, as they scored the next seventeen points. Second year receiver AJ Green captured a touchdown reception for the seventh straight game, after quarterback Andy Dalton found him on a 10-yard strike. Each of the next two Denver possessions were ended by Cincinnati cornerback Terrance Newman intercepting Denver quarterback Peyton Manning. A forty-nine yard Mike Nugent field goal, and a two-yard BenJarvus Green-Ellis touchdown run were the result of the two ensuing Bengal possessions; giving them a 20–17 advantage. Peyton Manning then engineered back-to-back touchdown drives, separated by Andy Dalton throwing an interception of his own. Because the drives took place in the fourth quarter, Manning was officially credited with his forty-eighth career game-winning drive, surpassing Dan Marino for the NFL record. The Bengals attempted a late comeback, scoring three points on a Mike Nugent field goal, but were unable to recover an onside kick attempt to give themselves a chance to tie the game.
With the loss, the Bengals dropped to 3–5.
Week 10: vs. New York Giants
The Cincinnati Bengals entered their week ten matchup with the New York Giants reeling after four consecutive losses, separated by their week 8 bye week. Following their 3–1 start to the season, the Bengals had lost all momentum and fallen heavily in the AFC standings. Despite being heavy underdogs, the Bengals dominated the defending Super Bowl champions from start to finish, forcing four turnovers. With the win, they improved to 4–5 and snapped their 4-game losing streak.
Week 11: at Kansas City Chiefs
The Bengals entered their week eleven matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs sporting a 4–5 record coming off an upset victory over reigning the Super Bowl champions, the New York Giants. The Bengals cruised to an easy victory, not allowing a touchdown on defense. With the win, the Bengals improved to 5–5.
Week 12: vs. Oakland Raiders