FINANCE l EDUCATION l HEALTH l FAITH l THE BLOG

SPORTS___________

Man of the 'House: Marvin Lewis Funhouse

  Why he's the Man ... They may have the worst uniforms in the history of ever, but the Cincinnati Bengals, at this moment in time, may just be the best team in the NFL. (Okay, it's the Colts, but still.)

How have they pulled it off? Carson Palmer's breakout year has helped, as has Rudi Johnson and the electrifying Chad Johnson, as has a defense that's allowed less than 10 points per game thus far. To be fair, the schedule — brimming with the likes of the Browns, Vikings, Bears and Texans — has a little something to do with it.

But so does the man with the headphones. Yep, Marvelous Marvin Lewis, the Bengals' third-year head coach, has his charges off and running, and they're on their way to Cincinnati's first playoff berth since 1990. For that and more, we doff our Funhouse caps to coach Marv, the Man of the 'House for this week.

What he's done ...

In Lewi's rookie campaign as an NFL head coach, he guided the Bengals to an 8-8 record and a six-game improvement over their 2-14 season in 2002. For his troubles, Lewis finished second to New England's Bill Belichick in the AP voting for NFL Coach of the Year.

The next season, it was another 8-8 campaign, as the Bengals allowed Palmer to cut his teeth as an NFL quarterback. This year, the progress continues.

Coming into this year, the organization was so pleased with Lewis' performance that they extended his contract through 2008 and took the rare step of extending the contracts of his assistants through 2006. It's easy to see why Lewis is a rising star in the profession.

Before he was running the show in Cincy, Lewis was in Washington, where he helped the Redskins rank fifth in total defense. Before that, it was Baltimore, where, as Brian Billick's defensive coordinator/savior, Lewis crafted some of the greatest defenses in league history. His 2000 team set an NFL record by allowing only 970 yard rushing (!) for the entire year. In spite of Lewis' successes (and his Super Bowl ring), the job offers weren't coming. As such, Lewis became an object lesson in how difficult it still was for a black coach to rise through the ranks.

Way back when, Lewis was an all-conference linebacker at Idaho State. He began his coaching career at his alma mater and eventually worked his way into the NFL as linebackers' coach for the Steelers. And here he is — the early favorite to claim NFL Coach of the Year honors.

Off the field, coach Lewis and his wife Peggy will continue working with the Marvin Lewis Community Fund — a charitable endeavor that seeks to "empower, educate, and inspire children while enriching inner-city communities."

On the field, you can bet there's only one goal for Marv in Charge: the Bengals' first-ever Super Bowl win. And he just might pull it off.