Jan 7, 2016 4 min read

PITTSBURGH – Zero wins and six losses.

It’s a playoff record that does not haunt Marvin Lewis.

The McDonald native and head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals is driven by his previous playoff failures.

While he’s focused on trying to win Saturday when the Bengals (12-4) host the Steelers (10-6), he also has more important things in mind than just getting his first playoff win in seven tries.

“One-and-six,” said the 57-year-old Lewis of the goal. “That’s all. It’s important to move on and win. Our guys have worked hard, we have to come out and play great football. That’s what’s key and paramount. It’s not personal to me. It’s an important game for our football team because it keeps our goals in line. Now that we’re in our ‘second season,’ there’s a finality to this. We have to play error-free football. On offense, defense, and special teams, we have to make things happen. Our good players have to rise up and play great; that’s part of winning here in January.”

The Bengals haven’t won a playoff game in 25 years. With each passing year and playoff loss, the pressure builds on the organization and its fans to finally break through.

But it wasn’t that long ago that playoff wins weren’t the problem. Just reaching the postseason was an issue.

In the 14 seasons after they defeated the Houston Oilers in the 1991 playoffs, Cincinnati not only failed to make another playoff appearance, they had just three non-losing seasons, each 8-8, and two came in Lewis’ first couple seasons as head coach.

It wasn’t until Lewis’ third season, 2005, that the Bengals finally ended their playoff drought, winning their first division title since 1990.

Interestingly, Lewis’ first playoff game came against the Steelers, who gave him his first shot as an NFL assistant. Lewis was hired by Bill Cowher in 1992 as linebackers coach after previously coaching in college.

That staff also included some of the greatest defensive minds in the game. In addition to Cowher and Lewis, coordinator Dom Capers and defensive backs coach Dick LeBeau, whom Lewis would later replace as head coach of the Bengals, were on the staff.

Lewis still sees components of the defense that staff created nearly 25 years ago.

“I could pretty much get in the huddle and call it,” Lewis said.

Lewis, who left the Steelers following the 1995 season to become defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens, spent just one season coaching away from the team that now form the AFC North, that coming in 2002, when he spent a year as Steve Spurrier’s defensive coordinator in Washington. He was hired by Cincinnati the next year.

Despite the familiarity with the Steelers, Pittsburgh remains a thorn in his side.

Lewis is Cincinnati’s all-time winningest coach with a 112-94-2 record in 13 years.

He’s led the Bengals to four division championships, more than any coach in team history. But his record against the Steelers is a less-than-stellar 8-19. Included in that mark is a 31-17 loss in the 2005 playoffs, one of 14 wins in 17 games for the Steelers at Paul Brown Stadium since it opened in 2000.

“I think we won here last year, didn’t we?” Lewis testily asked when questioned about the Steelers’ success in Cincinnati during his tenure.

Lewis, however, couldn’t care less about who the Bengals’ opponent is for this playoff game. With Cincinnati having assembled one of the best rosters in the NFL and winning 12 games this season, matching the team record for wins, the Bengals have bigger goals in mind.

“One win is not what we’re looking for,” Lewis said. “I think it will be a relief for outside of this building, yes.”

Inside, other than Lewis and a handful of assistant coaches, including South Fayette natives Jonathan and Jay Hayes, there aren’t many of the same players or coaches around who experienced all of those playoff defeats.

“Each and every time out there’s a new opportunity,” Lewis said. “It’s new folks, new faces, and a new situation.”