Cincinnati Bengals 1970 Record:                      8 wins and 6 losses

In 1970 the NFL (National Football League) and AFL (American Football League) merged to become one league.  With the merger of the two leagues, the Cincinnati Bengals found an immediate rival when it was announced the Cleveland Browns would be included in their division.  This guaranteed the Bengals the chance to play the Browns twice a season.  The Bengals new stadium, Riverfront Stadium opened in 1970.  The Stadium was a multi purpose stadium that was built right along the Ohio River in downtown Cincinnati.  The Stadium had a capacity to hold 60,389 fans. 

The season started out very rocky with an injury to Quarterback Greg Cook’s shoulder in training camp.  This injury left Virgil Carter as the Bengals starting Quarterback for the 1970 season, and it sadly ended the Career of Greg Cook.  To this day Bengals fans who saw Greg Cook play still wonder just how good Cook might have been. 

The Bengals opened Riverfront Stadium with a win against the always tough Oakland Raiders beating them 31-21. The Bengals hitting a losing skid and ended up losing their next 6 games.  This included a loss to Cleveland 30-27 in Cleveland where 83,520 fans showed up to see the game.  A rivalry was born.  It looked like the Bengals were headed for another poor season when they began to turn it around with a 43-14 win in Buffalo over the Bills. The win against Buffalo started them off on a 7 game winning streak that ended up leaving the Bengals in 1st place in the AFC Central. The Bengals entered the playoff on a roll. 

The Bengals had to face the Baltimore Colts in game one of the Divisional Playoffs unfortunately for the Bengals; the Colts were on a roll of their own.  Led by their defense and Defensive Lineman Bubba Smith and Linebacker Mike Curtis, they beat the Bengals 21-0 to take the AFC East Title.  The Colts eventually went on to beat the Dallas Cowboys in the first post merger Super Bowl 16 to 13. Bengals Running Back Jess Phillips led the Cincinnati Bengals in rushing (163 Att, 648 Yds, 4.0 Avg, 76 Long, 4 TD).  Phillips had his best season as a Cincinnati bengal in 1970. 

Scored 312 points (22.3/g), 7th of 26 in the NFL                                                                                                                                      Allowed 255 points (18.2/g), 9th.
Differential of 57 points (4.1/g), 9th.

(Corner Back Lemar Parrish was selected for the Pro Bowl)
(Tight End Bob Trumpy was selected for the Pro Bowl)