Marvin Lewis

Marvin Roland Lewis Jr. (born September 23, 1958) is an American football coach who is the assistant head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL).

Previously, Lewis was the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals for 16 seasons.

A contending team in the mid-late 1970s through the 1980s, the Bengals had fallen on hard times in the 1990s and had had several head coaches.

However, Lewis didn't take long to return the Bengals to respectability with a nucleus of young players such as quarterback Carson Palmer, running back Rudi Johnson, receivers Chad Johnson and T. J. Houshmandzadeh, and defensive backs Tory James and Deltha O'Neal.

Lewis began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Idaho State before becoming the team's linebackers coach for four seasons (1981–1984).

Idaho State won the NCAA Division I-AA Championship during his first year with the team.

Lewis was an assistant coach at Long Beach State University (1985–1986), the University of New Mexico (1987–1989), and the University of Pittsburgh (1990–1992).

At the time of his hiring, the Bengals had not had a winning season or postseason appearance since 1990, and finished with a franchise-worst 2–14 record.

By his third season, Lewis ended both droughts and led the Bengals to their first division title in 15 years.

Lewis had coaching internships with the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers before being hired as the linebackers coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1992.

He was a member of the Steelers' staff when the team lost Super Bowl XXX to the Dallas Cowboys.

He came to prominence as the defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens from 1996 to 2001, whose defense in 2000 set the record for the fewest points allowed in a 16-game season and led the franchise to their first Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XXXV.

The newly relocated Baltimore Ravens (formerly the Cleveland Browns), hired Lewis as their defensive coordinator in 1996, a position that he held for six seasons (1996–2001).

In 2001, he was inducted into Idaho State University's Sports Hall of Fame.

On January 28, 2001, the Ravens defeated the New York Giants 34–7 in Super Bowl XXXV thanks largely to a defense that allowed the fewest rushing yards (970) and the fewest points (165) in a 16-game regular season.

"If ever a man proved his worth as a future head coach, Marvin Lewis did it with this complete domination of the Giants in their 16 possessions: Punt, punt, punt, punt, punt, punt, interception, punt, interception, interception, punt, interception, punt, punt, punt, end of game", wrote Sports Illustrated writer Michael Silver after the game.

Lewis was a prime candidate for several NFL head coaching jobs but was passed over each time.

Most notably, he nearly became head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2002.

General manager Rich McKay was ready to formally offer the job to Lewis, and the Ravens actually held a going-away party for him.

However, the team's owners, the Glazer family, were unwilling to give the job to another defense-minded coach after firing Tony Dungy.

Lewis was also a prime candidate for the Buffalo Bills coaching vacancy, but was passed over in favor of Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator Gregg Williams.

Shortly afterward, Lewis was hired by the Washington Redskins as defensive coordinator and assistant head coach under Steve Spurrier.

This success resulted in Lewis being named the Bengals' head coach, where he served from 2003 to 2018.

He was also a commentator for the Alliance of American Football (AAF).

Lewis's head coaching tenure oversaw improved fortunes for the struggling Bengals and helped transform the team into postseason contenders.

Lewis became the ninth coach in Cincinnati Bengals history on January 14, 2003, when he was hired to replace Dick LeBeau, who was fired after the worst season in franchise history in terms of win percentage, edging out Tom Coughlin and Mike Mularkey.

Lewis also had interviews with the Buffalo Bills, the Carolina Panthers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Cleveland Browns.

Lewis also declined head coaching positions in the college ranks with the University of California, Berkeley and Michigan State University to continue pursuing his goal of becoming a head coach in the NFL.

He was named Coach of the Year in 2009, making him the first Bengals coach to receive the honor since team founder Paul Brown in 1970.

While credited with returning the Bengals to respectability, Lewis' reputation was affected by a lack of postseason success and he was ultimately unable to lead the team to a playoff win.

His 131 regular season victories, 16 years as a head coach, and seven postseason losses are the most of NFL head coaches who have not won a playoff game.

Marvin Lewis was born in McDonald, Pennsylvania, a small town about twenty miles west of Pittsburgh.

He started playing football at the age of 9 and played safety and quarterback for his team at Fort Cherry High School.

He was on the wrestling team and played baseball in the summers.

He initially decided to walk on as a football player at Purdue University, but subsequently received a scholarship to attend Idaho State University.

He primarily played linebacker.

In total, he guided the Bengals to seven playoff appearances and four division titles, along with a franchise-best five consecutive postseason appearances from 2011 to 2015.

Lewis is the franchise's most winning head coach at 131.

He was named Idaho State Alumni of the Year for 2012.

Lewis received both his bachelor's degree in physical education and a master's degree in athletic administration from Idaho State.