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By Adam Schefter
ESPN
People who have spoken to Marvin Lewis say that, as much as he'd like to stay in Cincinnati as the Bengals' coach, he believes it's time to move on from his current job -- unless the team makes changes they've been unwilling to make for years.
Lewis, whose contract expires after this season, will meet early this week with Bengals president Mike Brown, according to league sources.
Lewis would like the Bengals to upgrade their training facilities and their player personnel department, and he is so adamant on these issues that it is the reason he declined to sign the contract extension offered him before this season.
If Cincinnati is unwilling to budge on these issues -- and there is no indication they are -- then Lewis will not return to Cincinnati next season and he will become the latest desirable coach on the open market.
The Bengals have had only two winning records and lost their two playoff games during his eight seasons. He has a 60-67-1 record following Sunday's 13-7 loss at Baltimore (11-5).
The Bengals had gone 15 years between winning records when he led them to the division title in 2005. They won it again last year, and splurged on the payroll to try to win their first back-to-back division titles in franchise history.
Instead, Lewis has presided over perhaps the franchise's biggest disappointment. The Bengals tied the club record by losing 10 in a row, and receiver Terrell Owens blamed the coaching staff for the offense's troubles. Cincinnati failed to sell out the last four home games.
Should Lewis leave, the Bengals have an ideal in-house candidate in defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer.
Adam Schefter is ESPN's NFL Insider. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
ESPN
People who have spoken to Marvin Lewis say that, as much as he'd like to stay in Cincinnati as the Bengals' coach, he believes it's time to move on from his current job -- unless the team makes changes they've been unwilling to make for years.
Lewis, whose contract expires after this season, will meet early this week with Bengals president Mike Brown, according to league sources.
Lewis would like the Bengals to upgrade their training facilities and their player personnel department, and he is so adamant on these issues that it is the reason he declined to sign the contract extension offered him before this season.
If Cincinnati is unwilling to budge on these issues -- and there is no indication they are -- then Lewis will not return to Cincinnati next season and he will become the latest desirable coach on the open market.
The Bengals have had only two winning records and lost their two playoff games during his eight seasons. He has a 60-67-1 record following Sunday's 13-7 loss at Baltimore (11-5).
The Bengals had gone 15 years between winning records when he led them to the division title in 2005. They won it again last year, and splurged on the payroll to try to win their first back-to-back division titles in franchise history.
Instead, Lewis has presided over perhaps the franchise's biggest disappointment. The Bengals tied the club record by losing 10 in a row, and receiver Terrell Owens blamed the coaching staff for the offense's troubles. Cincinnati failed to sell out the last four home games.
Should Lewis leave, the Bengals have an ideal in-house candidate in defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer.
Adam Schefter is ESPN's NFL Insider. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
