Michael Hull

In the weeks leading up to training camp, we will take a look back at a few of the most pivotal seasons in Bengals history. Let's kick things off with the inaugural season, 1968.

Season Summary

The Bengals became the 10th team in the American Football League in 1968. The planning for the franchise actuallybegan three years earlier, when Paul Brown met with Ohio governor Jim Rhodes. A year later, Cincinnati city council approved the construction of Riverfront Stadium, set to be complete in 1970. They played their first two seasons at Nippert Stadium on the University of Cincinnati campus while the downtown stadium was being constructed.

Brown returned to the sidelines as head coach of the new team, named the Bengals in recognition of previous Cincinnati pro football franchises with the same name in the 1930s and 1940s. He had previously spent 17 seasons as the head coach of the Browns and would spend eight years as head coach of the new Bengals.

The AFL allocation draft awarded the Bengals 40 players, and Cincinnati selected C Bob Johnson with its first pick in the college draft. Johnson would play 12 seasons with the Bengals and be selected to the AFL All-Star game in 1968. The University of Tennessee product became the first Bengal to have his No. 54 jersey retired, and he was the first everRuler of the Jungle ahead of the Bengals home opener against the Minnesota Vikings in 2021.

"My father felt since it was the first pick it had to be someone with character,"Bengals president Mike Brown told Bengals.com in a 2016 story."Bob was a very solid player. During his time here he was always one of the leaders of the team The other players listened to him because they respected his intelligence, the way he lived his life, the way he practiced and comported himself around the team."

Cincinnati won its first two games in Nippert Stadium against Denver and Buffalo. The team's first win in franchise history, Cincinnati took down the Broncos, 24-10, on Sept. 15.

Notables

Johnson was one of three Bengals to be named to the 1968 AFL Pro Bowl, joining TE Bob Trumpy and RB Paul Robinson.

Trumpy led the Bengals in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, recording 37 receptions for 639 yards and three touchdowns. Trumpy would go on to be named to four pro bowls over his 10-year career with the Bengals

Robinson became the first player in team history to rush for over 1,000 yards, carrying the rock 238 times for 1,023 yards and eight touchdowns. He scored the first touchdown in franchise history, a two-yard plunge in a Week 1 loss to the San Diego Chargers. He would also be named to the 1969 AFL Pro Bowl and spent five total seasons with the club.

QB John Stofa led the team in passing, throwing for 896 yards and five touchdowns across seven starts and 10 total games played. Future Bengals coach Sam Wyche started three games under center, and Dewey Warren started four. Warren started the team's first game in San Diego.

Paul Brown's coaching staff had six total members, one of which was future Hall of Fame head coach Bill Walsh, then an offensive assistant under Brown.