2011 Cincinnati Bengals

The 2011 Cincinnati Bengals season was the team's 44th season as a professional sports franchise and its 42nd season as a member of the National Football League (NFL). The team improved on its 2010 season, where it finished with a record of 4–12 and placed fourth in the AFC North. This marked the 21st season under the leadership of owner and team president Mike Brown. It also marked the ninth season under head coach Marvin Lewis, who the team re-signed following the 2010 season. The Bengals played all of their home games at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio.

2011 NFL Draft

 * undefined Compensatory selection.

Schedule
The Bengals' preseason schedule was announced on April 12, 2011.


 * Indicates that the game will be broadcast locally in the Cincinnati television market on Local 12 WKRC. The game will also rebroadcast on the NFL Network later that week.

Schedule

 * Indicates that the game was blacked out locally due to low ticket sales.

Week 1: at Cleveland Browns
With the win the Bengals began the season 1-0 and secured their first regular season opening day win since 2007.

Week 2: at Denver Broncos
With the loss, the Bengals fell to 1-1.

Week 3: vs. San Francisco 49ers
With the loss, the Bengals were left in last place in the AFC North at 1-2.

Week 4: vs. Buffalo Bills
With the win, the Bengals improved to 2-2.

Week 5: at Jacksonville Jaguars
With the win, the Bengals improved to 3-2.

Week 6: vs. Indianapolis Colts
With the win, the Bengals went into their bye week at 4-2.

Week 8: at Seattle Seahawks
With the win, the Bengals improved to 5-2.

Week 9: at Tennessee Titans
With the win, the Bengals improved to 6-2 and won 5 straight games for the first time since 1988.

Week 10: vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
With the loss, the Bengals fell to 6-3.

Week 11: at Baltimore Ravens
With the loss the Bengals fell to 6-4.

Week 12: vs. Cleveland Browns
With the win, the Bengals improved to 7-4 and swept the Browns for the first time since 2009.

Week 13: at Pittsburgh Steelers
With the loss, the Bengals fell to 7-5 and were swept by the Steelers for the 2nd straight season.

Week 14: vs. Houston Texans
With the loss, the Bengals fell to 7-6.

Week 15: at St. Louis Rams
With the win, the Bengals improved to 8-6.

Week 16: vs. Arizona Cardinals
With the win, the Bengals improved to 9-6 and secured their first winning season since 2009 and 4th since 1990.

Week 17: vs. Baltimore Ravens
With the loss, the Bengals ended the regular season with a record of 9-7 and were swept by the Ravens for the first time since 2008. However, with the Denver Broncos loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, the Bengals earned a wild card spot in the playoffs by capturing the #6 seed.

AFC Wild Card Playoff Game: at #3 Houston Texans
Entering the postseason as the AFC's #6 seed, the Bengals began their playoff run at Reliant Stadium in the AFC Wild Card Round against the Houston Texans, looking to avenge their Week 14 loss.

Cincinnati struck first in the opening quarter with a 1-yard touchdown run from running back Cedric Benson, but the Texans answered with running back Arian Foster getting an 8-yard touchdown run. The Bengals replied in the second quarter with a 37-yard field goal from kicker Mike Nugent, yet Houston regained the lead with kicker Neil Rackers making a 39-yard field goal, followed by defensive end J.J. Watt returning an interception 29 yards for a touchdown with less than a minute left in the first half. From there, Houston took control as quarterback T.J. Yates completed a 40-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Andre Johnson in the third quarter, followed by Foster getting a 42-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.

With the loss, Cincinnati's season came to an end with an overall record of 9-8.

Television Blackouts
Six of the Bengal's eight home games were blacked out locally due to poor ticket sales. Dating back to 2010, seven consecutive games were blacked out locally. That streak ended in week 10 when the Bengals hosted the Pittsburgh Steelers. There were three more blackouts before the Bengals sold out the final home game of the season against the Baltimore Ravens, a game with playoff implications for both teams. Attendance for the week 16 home game against the Arizona Cardinals was only around 41,000 with a stadium capacity of 65,000.